The Interview Blunders That Nearly Ruined Megan Fox's Career

Actress Megan Fox remains one of the most talked about celebrities on the planet. Her lucrative Hollywood career and hugely publicized relationship with musician Machine Gun Kelly continue to draw headlines from outlets across the internet, particularly gossip sites. Her breakthrough came in 2007, when she starred opposite Shia LaBeouf in the first installment of the "Transformers" franchise. The movie was a huge box office success, and Fox emerged as one of the decade's biggest new sex symbols. Her performance had her admirers comparing her to the all-time Hollywood bombshells of the classic era, and she looked set to enjoy a stellar career from then on. 

Fox returned to the franchise alongside LaBeouf in 2009 for the sequel "Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen," which Box Office Mojo says grossed over $400 million. At this time, Fox was at the height of her fame and in high demand for interviews with prestigious magazines and late-night talk shows. And it was during this period that the newly-minted movie star, who was still in her early 20s, made some ill-thought-out comments that looked likely to bring her burgeoning acting career to a premature end.

The original "Transformers" movie was a huge commercial success. According to Box Office Mojo, it brought in more than $300 million and laid the groundwork for the franchise to continue releasing profitable movies to the present day. Much of the vision for the film, which is based on characters from the Hasbro toy universe, came from director Michael Bay. Up to that point, the action movie veteran was behind some of the 1990s' biggest blockbuster like "Bad Boys," "Armageddon" — which is considered a sci-fi classic despite making dubious scientific claims — and "Pearl Harbor."

Bay is considered a steady hand within the movie industry, with the expertise to create large-scale films that chime with audiences. Working with such big budgets, however, is a pressurized environment, and Bay is known to be an uncompromising director. "I yell a lot," he has said, per Tribute.ca. "I'm very vocal and demanding, but that's because I'm making massive, noisy movies and I need to keep control."

In 2009, Fox gave an interview to Wonderland magazine and spoke in shockingly unflattering terms about Bay. "He's like Napoleon and he wants to create this insane, infamous mad-man reputation," she said. "He wants to be like Hitler on his sets, and he is. So he's a nightmare to work for but when you get him away from set, and he's not in director mode, I kind of really enjoy his personality because he's so awkward, so hopelessly awkward. He has no social skills at all. And it's endearing to watch him." Executive producer Steven Spielberg, who is Jewish, reportedly took issue with the comments, particularly the Hitler reference. In an interview with GQ, Bay said the director had Fox removed from the franchise for the third movie.

Director Michael Bay, who was raised Jewish, might have been expected to be aghast at Megan Fox's remarks. However, it seemed — when it came to these comments at least — Bay was sanguine. "I wasn't hurt, because I know that's just Megan," he said in an interview with GQ. "Megan loves to get a response. And she does it in kind of the wrong way. I'm sorry, Megan. I'm sorry I made you work 12 hours. I'm sorry that I'm making you show up on time. Movies are not always warm and fuzzy."

But Fox's criticism of Bay didn't stop there. Speaking on "Jimmy Kimmel Live" in 2009, she claimed that as an extra on "Bad Boys II" in 2003, she was made to dance underneath a waterfall in a stars-and-stripes bikini, cowboy hat, and six-inch heels — despite being 15 years old at the time. Unflattering details of Bay's working relationship with Fox turned up in The Guardian around the same time. According to the outlet, Fox claimed that as part of her audition for "Transformers," Bay had made her wash his Ferrari at his home while he filmed her. But the story doesn't end there.

2017 saw the rise of the #MeToo movement, a grassroots campaign to tackle sexual harassment, abuse, and gender-based discrimination. It had seismic consequences for the entertainment industry as women came forward with their stories of mistreatment at the hands of powerful men. The watershed moment permanently changed our culture. As such, many celebrity interactions from before MeToo, including Fox's interview with Jimmy Kimmel and the Guardian story about her washing Michael Bay's car, came to be reappraised in a none-too-positive light.

In 2020, Fox was forced to clarify the public comments she had made years ago, posting an Instagram statement clarifying that she had "endured some genuinely harrowing experiences in a ruthlessly misogynistic industry." But as reported by Entertainment Weekly, she said that Bay had "never assaulted or preyed upon [me] in what I felt was a sexual manner." Bay addressed the comments by posting stills of Fox smiling during her "Transformers" audition and insisted that he was looking forward to working with her again in the future. Indeed, by this time, Fox had already starred in the 2014 movie "Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles," which Bay produced.

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).