Even Hollywood's top stars have been fired from their jobs at some point. Many celebrities provoke controversy just because of their celebrity, but some controversies are far more serious than others. Reality stars, celebrity chefs, TV anchors, actresses, journalists, fashion designers, and everyone in between have all been dismissed for uttering offensive things. They all have one thing in common: their loose lips sank their professional ships.
Some were fired for their racist comments, such as Rick Sanchez and Roseanne Barr, and others, such as Alec Baldwin, were fired for being homophobic. Some stars are arguably undeserving of their unemployment, as they were canceled just for making edgy jokes, like the case of James Gunn.
Scroll below to see 15
celebs who have been canceled for their controversial comments.
#1 Rick Sanchez
Source: David Berkowitz / Wikimedia Commons
In 2010, Rich Sanchez made headlines. The former CNN news anchor dubbed Jon Stewart a "bigot" and complained that CNN and all major networks are run by Jews. CNN was unimpressed and fired him from the network.
#2 Helen Thomas
Source: John Mathew Smith / Wikimedia Commons
Helen Thomas, the first female president of the White House Correspondents' Association and a pioneer among the female political press corps, made some political news of her own in 2010 when she urged Jews "get...out of Palestine." She did retire following the incident, but the harm was irreversible.
#3 Martin Bashir
Source: MegRobertsonNY / Wikimedia Commons
Bashir technically quit, but the former MSNBC new host fled the network after a tantrum. During the interview, he referred to Sarah Palin as "America's resident dunce" and a "world-class moron." At the time, he was criticizing Palin for making a similarly contentious comparison. He did, however, later apologize for his nasty words.
#4 Gilbert Gottfried
Source: Montclair Film Festival / Wikimedia Commons
Gottfried, who was recognized for his distinctive accent, was fired as the voice of the Aflac duck in 2011. Gottfried was sacked from his job after tweeting jokes about the Japanese earthquake and tsunami. Not only were the remarks in terrible taste, but Aflac does 75% of its business in those areas as well.
#5 Anthony Cumia
Source: Unknown / Wikimedia Commons
Anthony Cumia, co-host of SiriusXM's Opie & Anthony, was fired in July 2014 after tweeting many racist statements. Cumia was apparently snapping shots in Times Square and then included a random woman in the photos. She allegedly hit him in the face after objecting to her appearance in his photos. Cumia retaliated with a barrage of tweets that included derogatory language. Screenshots of the now-deleted tweets were obtained by Gawker.
#6 Bill Maher
Source: Angela George / Wikimedia Commons
After agreeing with politically wrong sentiments aired on the show, the political comedian and television host lost his show "Politically Incorrect with Bill Maher." According to Maher, the 9/11 attackers were not cowardly, and instead, Americans "have been the cowards." Following that visit, he made further incendiary remarks, and his show was discontinued just a few months later.
#7 Phil Robertson
Source: Gage Skidmore / Flickr
In late 2013, the "Duck Dynasty" patriarch was chastised for making anti-gay remarks in an interview with GQ. In response to the interview and statements, A&E first suspended the reality star for the remarks. However, following fan outrage over the ban, the network later reinstated Robertson.
#8 Alec Baldwin
Source: Gage Skidmore / Wikimedia Commons
The actor, who is no stranger to controversy, had his MSNBC show, "Up Late With Alec Baldwin," canceled in late 2013 after launching a homophobic diatribe at a photographer. His career has subsequently recovered, thanks to a recurring sketch on Saturday Night Live in which he plays President Donald Trump.
#9 Megan Fox
Source: nicolas genin / Wikimedia Commons
The blushing brunette was fired as the love interest in the Transformers film franchise in 2009 after referring to the film's director, Michael Bay, as "Hitler." Bay, on the other hand, was not the one who wanted her gone. Rather, the request came from fellow director Steven Spielberg.
#10 Charlie Sheen
Source: Angela George / Wikimedia Commons
The actor was fired from his hit comedy "Two and a Half Men" for making antisemitic remarks about show creator Chuck Lorre in a 2011 radio appearance. Sheen was quickly sacked, barred from the Warner Bros. set, and replaced by Ashton Kutcher.
#11 Paula Deen
Source: Lifescript / Flickr
After admitting to using racist slurs in the past, the Food Network canceled the Southern diva's show in 2013. After a former employee filed a lawsuit alleging racial and sexual discrimination, the cancellation occurred, along with the loss of numerous endorsement arrangements. It should be noted, however, that the suit was later dropped.
#12 Rush Limbaugh
Source: Nicolas Shayko / Wikimedia Commons
After a particularly sexist outburst, the conservative radio talking head suffered a large departure of advertisers in early 2012. Limbaugh used strong language to criticize Georgetown University Law Center student Sandra Fluke's public testimony in favor of contraception coverage in health insurance. Despite Limbaugh's apology (which Fluke called "dubious"), hundreds of sponsors of his national radio show departed.
#13 Donald Trump
Source: Michael Vadon / Wikimedia Commons
Following the declaration of his presidential candidacy in June 2015, Donald Trump made statements on the contentious issue of immigration. Speaking directly to individuals crossing the border from Mexico, he made provocative remarks that linked Mexican residents to certain highly undesirable characteristics. As a result, NBC, Univision, Serta, and Macy cut relations with the entrepreneur.
#14 Roseanne Barr
Source: Alberto E. Rodriguez/Staff/Getty Images Entertainment
Roseanne Barr's program, Roseanne, was canceled by ABC on May 29, 2018, and her representation, ICM, dropped her as a client. Barr had tweeted earlier that day about Valerie Jarrett, a former Obama administration senior advisor. Barr compared Jarrett, a Black woman, to an ape in the tweet. Barr deleted the post and apologized after receiving a barrage of furious messages. The fallout, though, had already begun. Her show was subsequently canceled.
#15 James Gunn
Source: Mingle Media TV / Wikimedia Commons
Following the discovery of several inappropriate tweets, Walt
Disney Studios quickly fired James Gunn from the Guardians of the Galaxy franchise in July 2018. The tweets, which were posted before Gunn began work on the franchise, made jokes about a wide range of difficult themes, including sexual abuse, pedophilia, AIDS, and the Holocaust.
After briefly shutting down his Twitter account and erasing the controversial remarks, Gunn issued a series of tweets apologizing for and clarifying his behavior. He claimed that he used to participate in highly controversial humor, but that he had since matured as a person.
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