8 Famous Men Who Have Been Accused Of Toxic, Manipulative Behavior

Warning: This post contains descriptions of sexual violence.

When you’re a celebrity, whether you like it or not, a lot of your life is broadcasted to the world. And though that may be incredible for good things, like when you win an award or look incredible in a red carpet look, that might also mean broadcasting all the negative things too.

For many men in Hollywood, for example, their fame meant that their actions behind closed doors, either in sets, studios or at home, weren’t as private as they thought. So, through the years, many celebrity men were accused of being toxic and manipulative.

The latest to join the list was 21 Jump Street star Jonah Hill, who was accused of being toxic and abusive by his ex Sarah Brady earlier this year. “This is a warning to all girls. If your partner is talking to you like this, make an exit plan,” Brady said while sharing a series of screenshots of texts between them.

So, if you’re ready to get as infuriated as we are, check out all of the famous men who were accused of similar toxic and manipulative behavior below.

• Russell Brand

  

  Most recently, Russell Brand has faced with allegations of rape, sexual assault, and emotionally abusive behavior from four different women, per HuffPost. He has denied the allegations, claiming only that he was “very, very promiscuous” in his past

• Dr. Luke

  

  Unlike many of the allegations in this list, the claims against music producer Dr. Luke were examined in court in a complicated legal battle with the singer Kesha (born Kesha Sebert). 

  “For the past ten years, Dr. Luke has sexually, physically, verbally, and emotionally abused Ms. Sebert to the point where Ms. Sebert nearly lost her life,” detailed a lawsuit filed by Sebert, per BuzzFeed News. “Dr. Luke abused Ms. Sebert in order to destroy her self-confidence, self-image, and self worth so that he could maintain complete control over her life and career.”

  During their time working together, which the “Tik Tok” singer described as a “prison of his abuse,” she said the producer used “suffocating control” in order to continue contracts that were “one-sided, extortive, and devastating to her health, sanity, and career.”

  In addition, Sebert also sued Luke for sexual assault and battery and sexual harassment. Earlier this year, both parties settled their defamation lawsuit. 

• Kiefer Sutherland

  

  Kiefer Sutherland was reportedly so bad to work with, his co-star Freddie Prinze Jr. decided to quit acting after their time together. “I did 24, it was terrible,” Prinze Jr. told ABC News. “I hated every moment of it. Kiefer was the most unprofessional dude in the world. That’s not me talking trash, I’d say it to his face, I think everyone that’s worked with him has said that.”

  “I just wanted to quit the business after that,” the She’s All That star remembered. “So, I just sort of stopped.”

• Stephen Amell

  

  Arrow star Stephen Amell has done many problematic things over the years. From him saying it’s “difficult” for him not to understand racism in 2020, per Insider, to his most recent stance against the SAG-AFTRA strikes, the actor has been in the “canceled celebrities” list more times than we can count. 

  And, in 2021, allegations also came to light regarding his behavior with his wife, Cassandra Jean. In the reports from Page Six, Amell was reportedly removed after a flight attendant asked him multiple times to calm down as he allegedly screamed at Cassandra while appearing drunk. Soon after, Amell put out a statement confirming the incident on Twitter. “My wife and I got into an argument Monday afternoon on a Delta flight from Austin to LA,” the actor wrote. “I was asked to lower my voice and I did. Approximately 10 minutes later I was asked to leave the flight. And I did so immediately. I was not forcibly removed.”

  “I let my emotions get the better of me, end of story,” he added.

• Henry Cavill

  

  Last year, fans of The Witcher were shocked to hear that their main star Henry Cavill would be leaving the show. Soon after, however, allegations against Cavill’s toxic behavior on set came to light. 

  “At the beginning of the show, Henry was good to work with, [he had] a lot of difficult demands that made people think he wasn’t a team player but that’s not unusual for a big star,” a source told Deuxmoi. “In season 2 and 3, something shifted and he became really impossible for women to work with. Even worse here because the showrunner was a woman,” the source continued, referring to the series’ showrunner Lauren S. Hissrich.

  “He would try to overrule her and try to get changes made last minute across the baord without her knowledge which, if you know anything about showrunning, is completely f—,” the source continued. “Female writers/directors were suddenly being completely ignore on set unable to do their jobs,” they added, noting that Cavill would constantly make “disrespectful and toxic” comments. “Eventually his disrespect escalated, he would rewrite scenes without even alerting the other actors in the scenes until it was time to shoot. He wanted complete control of storylines but really had no idea of the limitations of TV, budget, structure, etc.” Unsuprisingly, Cavill was reportedly then fired and written off the show. 

• Bradley Cooper

  

  A Star Is Born star Bradley Cooper has also been accused of being manipulative by an ex. According to actress Jennifer Esposito, who married the actor in 2006 to 2007, their relationship was far from healthy. 

  “I should have noticed the red flags from the beginning—actually, they were more like an entire marching band squad of red flags—but I ignored them because, honestly, I didn’t think the relationship was really going to go anywhere,” Esposito writes in her book, titled Jennifer’s Way. “He was funny, smart, cocky, arrogant, and a master manipulator.”

  “One date became two, two dates became four,” Esposito remembered. “We had fun, but he also had a mean, cold side. His personality could flip on a dime, but that kind of behavior was familiar to me. I’d spent plenty of time walking on eggshells in my childhood home as well as on certain sets, so I quickly learned my role in the relationship and went forward accordingly. But the relationship was about him and what he needed, and nothing else…”

  Esposito then went on to remember the moments that led to their split. “Within days, my relationship hit an all-time low, and within a week, it was over,” she said, adding that it all happened as “abruptly, rudely, and with the exact callousness that I’d come to expect from him, but this time, I did nothing but agree to end it.”

• Armie Hammer

  

  In 2021, allegations against Call Me By Your Name star Armie Hammer went viral on social media. And, after one account, with the username House of Effie, accused the actor of abuse, cannibalism and rape, more women felt encouraged to speak out. 

  “He sucks out all the goodness you have left,” his ex Courtney Vucekovich told Page Six. “That’s what he did to me. I gave and gave and gave until it hurt.” Vucekovich said that Hammer would go as far as to text her 100 times per day. “He did some things with me that I wasn’t comfortable with,” she added. 

  Another ex, named Effie, accused him of being toxic and manipulative. “Looking back, it is now clear to me he was employing manipulation tactics in order to exert control over me, until I started to lose myself,” she said in a statement, per Vox. “He would often test my devotion to him, slyly removing and crossing my boundaries, as he became increasingly more violent. He abused me mentally, emotionally, and sexually.”

• Jonah Hill

  

  In July, Sarah Brady, a former girlfriend of Jonah Hill, accused the actor of being toxic and manipulative by sharing a series of text between them. In one of the screenshots, for example, Hill made a lists of demands for the Brady, who is a surfer.

  “If you need: Surfing with men, Boundaryless [sic] inappropriate friendships with men, to model, to post pictures of yourself in a bathing suit, to post sexual pictures, friendships with women who are in unstable places and from your wild recent past beyond getting a lunch or coffee or something respectful, I am not the right partner for you,” the 21 Jump Street star wrote. “If these things bring you to a place of happiness I support it and there will be no hard feelings. These are my boundaries for romantic partnership.”

  Above the texts from Hill, Brady wrote, “See the misuse of the term ‘boundaries’?” We do indeed!

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