Stars Who Fired Back At Disrespectful Interviewers On Live TV

Interviews present a prime opportunity for reporters to find out more about celebrities and address the important topics everyone wants to know about. No one appreciates softball questions since they are a waste of time for everyone involved, but there are personal boundaries that shouldn't be crossed. Ever. Sometimes, in the chase for a tasty headline or to grab the next bit of sensationalism between their teeth, interviewers disrespect the guests during their conversations, and fireworks explode like it's the Fourth of July.

Of course, there are stars who are absolute terrors to interview, and they tend to despise talking to the media no matter what the topic is. However, there are celebrities who have had good reasons for pushing back during a media event. Take Scarlett Johansson, for example: How would any rational person act if someone were to ask them if they were wearing underwear for a performance? Johansson's reaction is more than merited in this instance, and the interviewer should have considered how it would come across before asking something like this.

The "Avengers" actor isn't the only one who has had to put an interviewer in their place for weird or inappropriate questions, though. Let's take a look at some major stars who fired back at disrespectful interviewers and had everyone talking about it afterward.

Actors often undertake fitness programs to prepare for comic book movie roles and get into serious superhero shape. In preparation for "Deadpool & Wolverine," for example, Hugh Jackman put in the heavy lifting to become Logan again. Anne Hathaway experienced the same when she was cast as Selina Kyle, aka Catwoman, in Christopher Nolan's 2012 film "The Dark Knight Rises."

During the press tour for the film, reporter Jerry Penacoli from "Extra" asked Hathaway about getting in shape for the part. Hathaway explained that it wasn't about "being in perfect shape," but she needed to be fit enough to do the stunts. Penacoli then ventured into the topic of the figure-hugging nature of the catsuit before asking her about the "feline fitness regime." At this point, it became clear that Hathaway was uncomfortable with the line of questioning, as she let out a nervous laugh. She responded, "It's all the boring stuff that no one ever wants to do. It's just watch what you eat and get yourself to the gym."

Penacoli didn't leave it there, pressing her more about the workouts. Without missing a beat, Hathaway replied, "Are you trying to lose weight? What's the deal, man? You look great. No, seriously. We have to talk about this. What do you want? Are you trying to fit into a catsuit?" Penacoli squirmed, trying to make a joke of her response, before finally catching the hint and changing the topic before the interview spiraled further out of control.

It isn't unusual for musicians to step into the world of acting or vice versa. Barbra Streisand did it. Madonna did it. And so did Justin Timberlake. In the late 2000s, Timberlake paused his music career to venture into acting, appearing in films such as "The Love Guru," "The Social Network," and "Friends with Benefits." By the time Timberlake embarked on the press tour for the latter in 2011, he had already accumulated a decent number of screen credits. However, this didn't stop a reporter from asking why he crossed over from music to acting — a question he must have heard a million times at that point in his life.

At a press conference, a Russian reporter pressed Timberlake about his desire to be in movies, having already come from music. Timberlake's "Friends with Benefits" co-star Mila Kunis answered on Timberlake's behalf, addressing the reporter in perfect Russian: "Well, what would you rather have him do?" Laughter erupted as the journalist added, "I mean, isn't showbiz enough?" Kunis replied on his behalf again: "Well, if he wants to make movies, and he can, why shouldn't he? What kind of question is that? Why are you here?"

More giggles lit up the venue as the reporter stated they were working, to which Kunis replied, "Well, so is he. It's the same thing." Eventually, Timberlake replied with a joke, pointing at Kunis and saying, "This is my bodyguard."

When preparing to interview an actor, it's important for a reporter to do their research. They need to be aware of what the celebrity has done recently and some of the outside projects they may be involved in. This helps journalists avoid embarrassing themselves or becoming part of unbelievable events we watched happen live, such as what occurred to "KTLA Morning News" reporter Sam Rubin in 2014.

While chatting to Samuel L. Jackson during the press tour for "RoboCop" (via CNN), Rubin asked Jackson about a Super Bowl commercial he'd done. A perplexed Jackson asked what he was talking about. Rubin paused then apologized before Jackson called him out. The actor said, "You're as crazy as the people on Twitter. I'm not Laurence Fishburne." Rubin proceeded to apologize again before Jackson added, "We don't all look alike. We may be all Black and famous, but we all don't look alike." Jackson continued to rag Rubin, who looked like he wanted the ground below to open up and swallow him whole.

Rubin issued a public apology for what happened, stating, "I indicated to Samuel that I'd seen him during the Super Bowl, and he thought that I had confused him with the commercial Laurence Fishburne had done for a car company. Of course a 'Captain America' ad had also run during the Super Bowl, but I immediately felt so dumb, I didn't bring that up — and he gave me the shellacking that was well deserved."

A few weeks before "Extra" reporter Jerry Penacoli raised eyebrows by pressing Anne Hathaway about her "Dark Knight Rises" fitness routine, he sat down with Jeremy Renner and Scarlett Johansson to discuss "The Avengers" — and asked another inappropriate question to a female superhero actor. Penacoli asked Johansson about her character Natasha Romanoff's costume: "Were you able to wear undergarments?" Johansson told him he wasn't the first person to ask her that, adding, "What is going on? Since when did people start asking each other, in interviews, about their underwear?" Penacoli continued to put his foot further inside his own mouth by pointing out how tight the costume is, apparently trying to justify his question. Johansson replied, "I'll leave that up to your imagination. Whatever you feel I should be wearing, or not wearing, under that costume."

Penacoli caught the hint that he may not have asked an appropriate question and tried to diffuse the situation; however, Johansson continued to point out how strange the question was. Ultimately, the topic changed when she asked Penacoli if he had asked director Joss Whedon about his underwear.

"Channel 4 News" reporter Krishnan Guru-Murthy made headlines in 2013 when Quentin Tarantino lashed out at him over a question about the violence portrayed in his films. Two years later, Guru-Murthy hit the headlines again for rattling Robert Downey Jr., who didn't want to discuss his tragic real-life story.

At first, the sit-down interview went well as RDJ spoke about his role as Iron Man in "Avengers: Age of Ultron" and his relationship with comic book heroes. It took a turn, though, when Guru-Murthy chose to delve into more personal topics, including a statement that Downey made in an interview years earlier about going to prison. The star attempted to deflect the question, expressing how he made those comments years earlier and couldn't explain why he said what he did back then.

The reporter continued to press a little more, as RDJ uttered, "Are we promoting a movie?" Nonetheless, the actor answered the question. The point of no return occurred after Guru-Murthy asked about RDJ's relationship with his father and how it impacted the "dark periods" of his life. Downey replied, "I'm sorry. What are we doing?" As the reporter explained he was asking a question, RDJ said, "Bye," and got up. He patted the reporter on the shoulder then said, "It's getting a little Diane Sawyer in there," as he walked out of the room.

In recent years, there's been a conscious effort from the media to ask balanced and non-gender-specific questions to celebrities. It's about time, too, since most of the female performers were probably tired of hearing questions such as "What's it like to be a mother and actor?"

In 2014, Keira Knightley received a statue at the Hollywood Film Awards for her performance in "The Imitation Game." At the event, Knightley took the time to answer questions from reporters. One journalist asked the following: "How do you balance your career and personal life?" Knightley didn't miss a beat, hitting back with, "Are you going to ask all the men that tonight?"

The crowd cheered at Knightley's retort; however, the reporter replied that they would do so. Knightly smiled back and answered the question, stating, "You just do. In the same way that everyone else does. You have your work that you love and then you make sure you have time for your life and for the people who are important to you."

In 2017, Jonah Hill underwent a radical body transformation where it was noticeable that he lost a lot of weight. At an event, a reporter asked him what spurred this on. Hill replied, "I just decided one day I wanted to be healthier. And I went and saw a nutritionist and that's what I did. I stuck to it."

Hill's comment provided a definitive answer to the question, and it should have been an open-and-shut case on the topic. However, another reporter refused to move on, asking, "But are you still considered the fat guy when you go to a party or anything? 'Cause I run into that a whole lot. I'm the fat one."

The other journalists in the room let out stifled laughs; however, Hill's expression as he listened to the question spoke volumes, as he simply stared at the person blankly. Instead of answering or even dressing down the reporter, he turned to the rest of the people in the room and said, "Do you have any other questions that are smart?"

In the past, media coverage of actors' sexuality bordered on the obsessive, as everyone wanted to know how performers identified in their personal lives. While some were comfortable discussing such matters with the world, others preferred to chat about their work rather than private matters.

In 2015, Tom Hardy appeared at the Toronto International Film Festival press conference to discuss his film "Legend" (via 'Entertainment Tonight"). A reporter mentioned to Hardy that one of his "Legend" characters, Ron Kray, didn't hide his sexuality then brought up how Hardy had never quite given a definitive answer about his own sexuality. Ultimately, the question posed to the actor was, "Do you find it hard for celebrities to talk to [the] media about their sexuality?"

Hardy fired back: "What on Earth are you on about?" The reporter and Hardy went back and forth for a moment, before Hardy asked the reporter outright if they wanted to know about Hardy's sexuality in specific. Once the reporter confirmed that to be their goal, Hardy said, "Why?" The actor proceeded to thank the reporter and moved on with the press conference.

Mel Gibson's 2006 arrest put the Australian actor in the headlines for all the wrong reasons. While some people say all publicity is good publicity, that's not always true, especially if the scandal in question involves antisemitic slurs. Gibson apologized for his behavior in due course, but it was brought up in a live interview while he promoted his film "Edge of Darkness" four years later.

Appearing on WGN-TV, reporter Dean Richards asked Gibson if the actor thought the audience would accept him after all his previous scandals and controversies. Gibson asked for clarification, and when Richards referred to the 2006 incident, the actor replied, "That's almost four years ago, dude. I've moved on. I guess you haven't."

Richards pressed the actor further by asking again if Gibson thought the public would have "moved on." Gibson became visibly agitated and explained how he had apologized for his behavior and asked the interviewer to "move on." Richards stopped the line of questioning and added a plug for "Edge of Darkness" while Gibson sipped on his cup of coffee and threw a thumbs-up at the screen. Richards closed off the interview and said goodbye to the actor, to which Gibson replied, "Bye-bye, a**hole."

When people discuss talk show hosts who are terrible people, the conversation often turns to Ellen DeGeneres and her alleged behavior. In 2019, an awkward exchange took place on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show" between DeGeneres and Dakota Johnson that made everyone watching cringe with secondhand embarrassment.

As Johnson made her way onto the stage, DeGeneres wished her a happy belated birthday. Afterward, DeGeneres asked Johnson why she wasn't invited to her birthday party. Johnson replied, "Actually, no. That's not the truth, Ellen. You were invited." The actor explained to DeGeneres how the host had given her a hard time for not inviting her the year prior, so she extended an invitation to her in 2019, but DeGeneres didn't attend the party.

Caught like a deer in the headlights, DeGeneres kept asking if Johnson was sure she had invited her, and Johnson told her to speak to her producer for clarification. Someone else on the show confirmed that DeGeneres was indeed invited, and things became more awkward between host and guest. Finally, DeGeneres said, "No, I think I do remember I was invited. Thank you. No, but I really didn't remember that until just now." They discussed the party further, but there's no denying the conversation felt nervous from the moment Johnson called out DeGeneres live on air.

Despite the sage advice "don't believe everything you read on the internet," a lot of people do the opposite. In fact, all it takes is one little rumor on social media to run wild and spread misinformation, and everyone seems to believe it. Years ago, the gossip mill spun out a story that Lady Gaga had male genitalia. Rightfully so, the musician never outright said yay or nay; instead, she played with it.

In an interview with Anderson Cooper, the reporter asked Gaga about the rumor that she had male genitalia. She said, "Maybe I do. Would it be so terrible?" Cooper queried why she hadn't outright denied it, to which she said, "Why the hell am I going to waste my time and give a press release about whether or not I have a penis? My fans don't care, and neither do I."

In a 2024 interview on "What's Next? The Future With Bill Gates" (via The Independent), Gaga explained why she never bothered to answer the question that seemed to follow her around endlessly in the early 2010s. She said, "The reason why I didn't answer the question is because I didn't feel like a victim with that lie and I thought: What about a kid who is being accused of that who would think that a public figure like me would feel shame?"

Want to read more about the "Bad Romance" singer? Check out the inside story of Lady Gaga and Liza Minnelli's relationship.