Actors Who Treat Their Co-Stars Like Trash
Acting is all about chemistry. If co-stars don't get along, it can heavily impede the production of a movie or TV show. But for every sizzling Bogart and Bacall, there are co-stars whose chemistry suggests something nefarious bubbling under the surface.
In an industry as competitive as Hollywood, it's pretty much inevitable that not everybody will get along, but certain actors take their dislike of co-stars to extremes. Acting, like any other profession, attracts a fair amount of jerks. The field is, after all, ripe for egotism and conceit. Subsequently, some actors become so big-headed that they lash out at their fellow players.
The reasons why these actors treat their co-stars abysmally are manifold. It is common for stars to be power-hungry and end up on an ego trip; in other instances, an actor may find that their career is on the decline and the green ogre of jealousy surfaces when a co-star threatens to outshine them. Whatever the rationale, these actors treat their co-stars like trash. There are a number of surprises along the way, as even the most seemingly affable actors can face accusations of impropriety.
As Oscar Wilde famously said, "We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars." Based on the behavior of these stars, they never left the gutter.
Chevy Chase's long history of on-set bigotry
There's a reason why Chevy Chase has become a highly derided figure in recent years. The comic actor has a long history of treating co-stars appallingly. In 1985, Terry Sweeney became a part of "Saturday Night Live," making history as the show's "first openly gay cast member" (via Slate). On set, Sweeney was tormented by Chevy Chase, who subjected him to relentless homophobic abuse.
According to the book "Live From New York," Chase suggested that Sweeney should be weighed on a weekly basis to ascertain whether he had AIDS, leading to the comedian being reprimanded. "He was really furious that he had to apologize to me," Sweeney told the authors. The bullying was so horrendous that Sweeney branded Chase a "monster," as per The Washington Post.
When making "Community" years later, Chase allegedly racially abused Donald Glover, telling him, "People think you're funnier because you're black." The show's creator, Dan Harmon, corroborated these claims. As he explained to The New Yorker, "Chevy was the first to realize how immensely gifted Donald was, and the way he expressed his jealousy was to try to throw Donald off. I remember apologizing to Donald after a particularly rough night of Chevy's non-P.C. verbiage."
Responding to these claims, Chase remained evasive, simply saying that he was "saddened to hear that Donald perceived me in that light," as per The New Yorker.
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Lea Michele has been branded a bully by co-stars
"Glee" was a wholesome show, with Lea Michele adept at playing the naïve girl next door. Who would have expected, then, that the erstwhile Rachel Berry tormented her co-stars? Numerous co-stars have called out Michele for highly problematic on set behavior. It all began when "Glee" star Samantha Marie Ware replied to Michele's tweet showing support for Black Lives Matter movement. "Remember when you made my first television gig a living hell?!?!... I believe you told everyone that if you had the opportunity you would 's*** in my wig!' amongst other traumatic microaggressions that made me question a career in Hollywood," Ware wrote in a since-deleted tweet (archived by CNN). Michele apologized on Instagram, writing that she "clearly acted in ways which hurt other people."
But the potentially career-ending revelations didn't end there. Heather Morris went on to tweet (via People) that Michele was "unpleasant to work with" and treated others with "disrespect." Dabier Snell, who briefly appeared in the "Glee" episode "New Directions," tweeted, "GIRL YOU WOULDNT LET ME SIT AT THE TABLE WITH THE OTHER CAST MEMBERS CAUSE 'I DIDNT BELONG THERE' F*** YOU LEA."
And Michele's mistreatment of co-stars wasn't confined to the "Glee" set. Gerard Canonico starred alongside Michele on Broadway and called her out for seemingly playing the victim when addressing bullying claims. Commenting under Michele's apology post, Canonico wrote (via Daily Mail), "You were nothing but a nightmare to me and fellow understudy cast members."
Kirk Douglas wasn't easy to work with
He may have been a Hollywood legend, but Kirk Douglas had a mean side. The alleged hidden dark persona of the venerated actor was recently exposed by the sister of Natalie Wood, who claimed that Douglas brutally raped her when she was a teen, seemingly corroborating a longstanding Hollywood rumor.
When it came to being Douglas' co-star, actors had to watch out. During the filming of "The Heroes of Telemark," Douglas appeared to take an immediate dislike to Richard Harris, which David Weston attributes to the aging Douglas being jealous of young upstart Harris. In The Telegraph, Weston recalled some of the first words that Douglas uttered to Harris on set: "Are you going to be as big a b*****d as they say you are?" The Hollywood legend later grew bitter when he noticed that Harris was driving a swanky car, threatening to delay production until he, too, was given a luxury vehicle.
Similarly, he mistreated Doris Day on the set of "Young Man With a Horn." As documented in the book "Considering Doris Day: A Biography," Douglas branded Day "about the remotest person I know," while she lamented the film as an "utterly joyless experience." He was also cruel to Farrah Fawcett during the filming of the heavily panned sci-fi flick "Saturn 3." According to The Times, Douglas referred to Fawcett as "Mrs Majors," which upset her since she was in the midst of a divorce from actor Lee Majors.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
David Cross admitted to racially abusing a co-star
David Cross is known for his left-wing views, such as his vocal opposition to the conservative posturing of fellow comedian Larry the Cable Guy. So it was a major shock when stories of Cross hurling horrendous abuse at his co-stars Charlyne Yi and Michael Cera surfaced.
Cross and Yi starred in "Next Gen," a light-hearted kids' film. But behind the scenes, things couldn't be anything further from joyful. The first time they met Cross, Yi says that he subjected them to racist abuse. In a series of now-deleted tweets (via IndieWire), Yi wrote, "it is very uncool that a 40+ man was being racist toward me." According to Yi, Cross made various offensive jibes and even questioned whether they could speak English. Responding to the accusations, Cross claimed that he couldn't remember any of these racist remarks, but didn't deny them either. "I would never intentionally hurt someone like that," he tweeted. "I do not remember doing this when I met [them]... I am NOT accusing Charlyne Li of lying and I'm truly sorry."
In a lengthy tweet, Cross later backtracked on his inability to recollect the encounter. He went on to admit that he racially abused Yi, as well as offending their then boyfriend, Michael Cera, with whom Cross was filming "Year One" at the time. While Cross apologized for upsetting Yi and Cera, he rather dubiously claimed that he was in character as an "a**hole redneck racist."
If you or a loved one has experienced a hate crime, contact the VictimConnect Hotline by phone at 1-855-4-VICTIM or by chat for more information or assistance in locating services to help. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911.
Rex Harrison was mean to co-stars
In his heyday, Rex Harrison was an acclaimed actor, immortalized through his iconic depiction of grammar snob Henry Higgins in "My Fair Lady," a role that he typified both on Broadway and on the silver screen. Despite the lovable nature of the Higgins role, Harrison apparently treated numerous co-stars like absolute trash.
In the book "One Woman's War" (via Express), author Eileen Younghusband documented Harrison's alleged disdain for his co-stars. During the Broadway run of "My Fair Lady," he reportedly developed an intense hatred for Julie Andrews, who played famed cockney flower girl Eliza Doolittle, remarking, "If that b***h is still here on Monday I'm quitting the show." Andrews addressed Harrison's difficult behavior in her memoir "Home," writing, "I don't remember who said this, but someone made a cogent remark: 'No matter how big a s*** Rex was, the truth is he cut the mustard — and for that, one forgave him everything.'"
When "My Fair Lady" was adapted into the classic 1964 film, Harrison was cast alongside Audrey Hepburn and he took a dislike to her as well, believing that she was unsuitable for the role of Eliza Doolittle. According to Younghusband, he branded Hepburn "bloody Audrey." In his memoirs, an extract of which was published in the Daily Mail, Roger Moore said of the grumpy actor, "Rex Harrison could be a rather mean-spirited man, and he wasn't regarded very warmly by those who knew him."
Warren Beatty allegedly preyed on female co-stars
Despite his marriage to feminist actor Annette Bening, Warren Beatty has a lengthy history of alleged harassment against female co-stars. This harassment apparently occurred on the sets of two of his most famous films, "Reds" and "Dick Tracy."
Sean Young, who has all but disappeared from our screens, credits Beatty with effectively blacklisting her from Hollywood after she spurned his advances when making "Dick Tracy." As Young explained to The Daily Beast, she was fired from the production for refusing to sleep with Beatty. "It's not just Warren — it's across the board. Ever since the movie business began, women have been treated as a commodity. There was always someone grabbing you, and I just ignored it," she emphasized.
British actor Miriam Margolyes, who is gay, said that Beatty made crude remarks about her sexuality when auditioning for "Reds." During an interview with "ITV," Margolyes recalled her creepy encounter with the film's star and director. "When I went for an interview for 'Reds' a long time ago, I was told I could only see him in his trailer. So I knocked at the door, in the lunch hour, and he said, 'Come in.' I opened the door, he looked me up, down, up, and said, 'Do you f***?'" The actor replied, "Yes, but not you." While Margolyes handled the situation with wit, her story is yet another example of the horrors of the Hollywood casting couch.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
Tommy Lee Jones was cruel to Jim Carrey
In "Batman Forever," Jim Carrey and Tommy Lee Jones played the iconic villains Riddler and Two-Face, who teamed up to take on the Caped Crusader. But behind the scenes, it appeared that Jones perhaps lived up a little too much to his two-faced character.
Director Joel Schumacher has said that Jones acted like a bully towards Carrey on the set of the heavily-panned '90s flick. As he told Vulture, "he wasn't kind to Jim. He did not act towards Jim the way an Oscar winner with a star on Hollywood Boulevard, being the oldest member of the cast, and having such a distinguished career and the accolades to go with it, should have acted towards Jim."
During an appearance on "Norm MacDonald Live," Carrey addressed the hostile working environment, confessing, "Tommy Lee Jones said to me that he couldn't sanction my performance ... I was the star. That was the problem!" He continued, "I went over and I said, 'Hey Tommy, how you doin'?' and the blood just drained from his face like he had been thinking about me for 24 hours a day ... He went to hug me and he said, 'I hate you. I really don't like you.' And I said, 'Gee, man, what's the problem?' And I pulled up a chair, which probably wasn't smart, and he said, 'I cannot sanction your buffoonery.'" Holy mackerel! Perhaps all that time spent in the Batcave was giving Jones tunnel vision.
Ali Larter allegedly mistreated Leonard Roberts
Leonard Roberts claims that his onscreen wife Ali Larter subjected him to racism on the set of "Heroes," leading to him being fired. "D.L. Hawkins was in an interracial marriage with Niki Sanders, a white woman played by Ali Larter. The script suggested D.L. and Niki had a volatile relationship — and it wasn't long before art was imitating life, with me on the receiving end of pushback from my co-star," Roberts wrote in Variety. Despite Larter being the instigator, Roberts attempted to assuage the rift by gifting her a bottle of wine and a heartfelt note. "Neither the gift nor the note was ever acknowledged," Roberts revealed.
On another occasion, Larter refused to do an intimate scene with Roberts, despite being happy to film a sex scene with white actor Adrian Pasdar on a later occasion. In a damning revelation, he claimed that Larter attempted to stop him from ever divulging what had happened. Roberts alleged that the friction launched by Larter led to him being killed off on the show, with "the Ali Larter situation" being cited as the reason for his termination. Variety notes that Roberts' claims were verified by ten people who worked on the show.
Larter responded to the accusations in a statement to TVLine, saying, "I am truly sorry for any role I may have played in his painful experience during that time and I wish him and his family the very best."
If you or a loved one has experienced a hate crime, contact the VictimConnect Hotline by phone at 1-855-4-VICTIM or by chat for more information or assistance in locating services to help. If you or a loved one are in immediate danger, call 911.
Marlon Brando wasn't the man people think he is
There has long been an aura of mystique surrounding Marlon Brando, who is widely regarded as one of the greatest icons of Hollywood's Golden Age. Despite his numerous progressive stances, most notably his support of Native Americans and the civil rights movement, many of the actor's actions were inharmonious with his compassionate views.
The controversial film "Last Tango in Paris" contained an infamous rape scene. It has since surfaced that Brando and director Bernardo Bertolucci conspired together by not telling Schrader about the scene beforehand. "The sequence of the butter is an idea that I had with Marlon in the morning before shooting," the director said, as per Yahoo! Movies, adding, "I wanted her to react humiliated ... I think she hated me and also Marlon because we didn't tell her." Schrader said that she found the scene to be traumatic and humiliating. "So I did the scene and I cried. I cried real tears during that scene. I was feeling humiliation," she told The Telegraph (via Sydney Morning Herald).
Moreover, Brando yelled at Dennis Hopper on the set of "Apocalypse Now" over a minor misunderstanding and proceeded to have a tantrum. "He gets up and says 'I don't have to listen to this! I don't have to take this!' And he is screaming and yelling 'Why do I have to hear it from him? I have to hear it from this punk!'" Hopper told The Hollywood Reporter.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
Dustin Hoffman harassed a number of co-stars
Much loved for his sensitive performances in films such as "The Graduate," tales of Dustin Hoffman's horrifying mistreatment of co-stars arose in 2017, casting significant doubt on his clean-cut public image and forever tarnishing our beloved Mr. Bergstrom memes.
Kathryn Rossetter acted alongside Hoffman on the Broadway revival of "Death of a Salesman" and alleged that he was a total creep. In a piece for The Hollywood Reporter, Rossetter said that Hoffman suggested that they go over their lines in a hotel room and pressured her into giving him a back rub. "That was the beginning of what was to become a horrific, demoralizing and abusive experience at the hands (literally) of one of my acting idols," she wrote, going on to detail horrific incidents of sexual harassment and assault. "Night after night I went home and cried. I withdrew and got depressed and did not have any good interpersonal relationships with the cast. How could the same man who fought to get me the job, who complimented my work, who essentially launched my career ... how could he also be this sexual power abuser?" Rossetter reflected, illustrating the adeptness of abusers to be duplicitous.
Additionally, Slate unearthed a Time article from 1979, in which Meryl Streep recalled her first encounter with Hoffman, again during theater work. "He came up to me and said, 'I'm Dustin—burp—Hoffman,' and he put his hand on my breast," Streep remembered. "What an obnoxious pig, I thought."
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).
Bill Murray's problematic behavior towards Lucy Liu
Bill Murray may be a hero to many, but beneath his lovable deadpan persona lies a dark side. There's been a longstanding rumor that Murray treated Lucy Liu appallingly on the set of "Charlie's Angels." In a 2009 interview with The Times (via Entertainment Weekly), the actor pretty much confirmed that he was a jerk on set, but appeared to place the blame squarely on Liu, which is a common tactic used by abusive men. "Look, I will dismiss you completely if you are unprofessional and working with me," he said.
Speaking with The Los Angeles Times, Liu confirmed that Murray was cruel to her. "As we're doing the scene, Bill starts to sort of hurl insults, and I won't get into the specifics, but it kept going on and on," she revealed. "I was, like, 'Wow, he seems like he's looking straight at me' ... Some of the language was inexcusable and unacceptable, and I was not going to just sit there and take it. So, yes, I stood up for myself, and I don't regret it. Because no matter how low on the totem pole you may be or wherever you came from, there's no need to condescend or to put other people down."
On "The Drew Barrymore Show," the host said that while Murray was unkind to all his "Charlie's Angels" co-stars, he "zeroed in" on Liu. "And we all supported her and backed her up," Barrymore said.
Steven Seagal dominated and assaulted his co-stars
On the set of "Executive Decision," Steven Seagal acted like a total jerk. According to co-star John Leguizamo, Seagal had hefty delusions of grandeur and attempted to dominate his co-stars.
"The first day of rehearsal ... Joe Morton, B.D. Wong, Oliver Platt — we're all big actors, we're all big boys, we're all experienced," Leguizamo recalled to AV Club. "And we start rehearsing and he came in and was like, [low, breathy voice] 'I'm in command. What I say is law' ... I mean, who the f*** talks like that? Who comes into rehearsal and says that s**'? So I started laughing and he slammed me with an aikido elbow against a brick wall and knocked all the air out of me."
Moreover, Stephen Tobolowsky said that working with Seagal on "The Glimmer Man" was a traumatic experience. "[Director] John Gray came in and told me in a panic that Steven Seagal wanted to rewrite the script," Tobolowsky told AV Club. "He decided it was bad for his karma to constantly be killing people in movies, so he didn't want to kill me anymore ... And he said, 'Don't get into it with him. He believes it hurts his karmic development if he were to kill people.'" Eventually, Seagal relented only to end up ad-libbing a line that implied Tobolowsky's character hadn't died at all.
Daniel Day-Lewis takes his method acting out on his co-stars
It's not a secret that Daniel Day-Lewis is an extreme method actor, but his co-stars suffer as a consequence. He clashed repeatedly with Liam Neeson on the set of "Gangs of New York," with the Irish star branding his method acting "madness." Speaking with reporters after the "Taken" premiere (via Express), Neeson said that he was irritated by Day-Lewis' insistence that everyone refer to him by his character's name, even when they met up at the gym during out of work hours. "Actors such as Daniel Day-Lewis and Robert De Niro are often held up as 'this is the way to act' but I don't go to bed dreaming and sleeping the character," he said.
Likewise, although his "Phantom Thread" co-star Vicky Krieps enjoyed making the film, she said Day-Lewis basically lived as his cold, cruel protagonist throughout production and treated her accordingly. As noted by The Guardian, "Preparing his role as Reynolds Woodcock, a London couturier, Day-Lewis – with his habitual method-actor zeal – learned to think like Balenciaga, sewed 100 buttonholes and kept Krieps at bay."
Krieps explained that she didn't meet her co-star prior to their first scene, stating, "I think this is what he [Day-Lewis] intended ... I thought: if that is the rule of the game, I'll play it. I spent a whole day staring into greenery to avoid him." Think there's madness to his method? Be prepared: Day-Lewis will drink detractors' milkshake.
Noel Clarke allegedly harassed female co-stars
Just when British actor Noel Clarke was flying high due to the popularity of his TV show "Viewpoint," he was exposed for allegedly forcing his female co-stars into uncomfortable sexual scenarios. Subsequently, the series finale was axed in the wake of the alarming revelations. As reported by The Guardian, 20 women have accused Clarke of "sexual harassment, unwanted touching or groping, sexually inappropriate behavior and comments on set, professional misconduct, taking and sharing sexually explicit pictures and videos without consent, and bullying."
Jing Lusi starred alongside Clarke in the film "SAS: Red Notice" and alleged that he propositioned her for sex, telling his co-star that "he couldn't help it: 'It's how you make me feel.'" When Lusi rejected Clarke's advances, she said he exhibited a terrifying dark side and threatened her. "After he realized that it was not going to happen, he then absolutely without any emotion [said]: 'All right, fine, don't tell anyone about this, yeah? 'Cause if you do, it will get back to me, I will find out,'" Lusi recounted to The Guardian.
In addition to the many female co-stars who accused Clarke of sexual misconduct, Adam Deacon, who starred alongside the disgraced actor in "Adulthood," called out his "sociopathic" former co-star on Twitter. Deacon claimed that Clarke "continually sabotaged" his career. "I only wish that everyone had taken more notice of my words. His horrific abuse of power could have been stopped before it affected so many others," he lamented.
If you or anyone you know has been a victim of sexual assault, help is available. Visit the Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network website or contact RAINN's National Helpline at 1-800-656-HOPE (4673).