Some celebs stir the pot notoriously too many times that they have burned some bridges on TV late-night talk shows. Stars often appear on talk shows to promote their latest movies, albums, or other
Entertainment projects. Late Night Talk Shows are often used as a famous marketing tool. It is also a good way to connect to the fans. On the other hand, celebs can help spike ratings for a talk show due to their popularity. It is a win-win situation.
Late-night talk show hosts are grateful for the stars coming to sit on the couch and have a chat. However, there have been numerous times when a host has banned a celeb because of their outrageous behavior, because it's a matter of principle, or simply because the host and the star just don't get along. Those who got banned won't be invited to the show again. What's more, several superstars have been preemptively "blacklisted" before having a chance to become a guest due to their own conflicts.
Let's check out how these celebs got kicked out of late-night shows!
#1. Jon Stewart on Hugh Grant: Worst. Guest. Ever.
Source: Late Show, Comedy Central
“He’s giving everyone sh*t the whole time, and he’s a big pain in the a**,” Stewart said of Grant’s 2009 appearance. The host went on to say that the actor complained to the staff about the clip played from Did You Hear About the Morgans?.“What is that clip? It’s a terrible clip,” Grant supposedly said, to which Stewart shot back appropriately: “Well, then make a better fucking movie.”
Would Stewart ever have Grant back? “Never,” he said.
#2. Jay Leno Wasn't Welcomed On 'Conan' After Taking Back 'The Tonight Show'
Source: Tonight Show, NBC
The 2010 Tonight Show conflict was a media and public relations conflict involving the American television network NBC and two of its late-night talk show hosts, Conan O'Brien and Jay Leno, over the timeslot and hosting duties of the long-running franchise The Tonight Show. Speaking to Playboy in 2010, O'Brien said he'd moved on from the incident, refusing to let it embitter him. But when asked whether he'd ever invite Leno to be a guest on his TBS show, O'Brien responded, "No, there are certain things I will not do, regardless of the price."
#3. Gary Busey Got The Boot After Trying To Wrestle Howard Stern
Source: NBC
When Gary Busey was invited to join the host and his team of commentators on the Howard Stern Show in 2001, his outlandish behavior got him blacklisted. At one point, the actor picked up Howard's longtime co-host Robin Quivers and attempted to lift her above his head. He then turned on Stern himself and, after chasing him around the studio to the point of exhaustion, tried to wrestle him to the floor. Despite repeated warnings from staff and Howard himself to calm down and mind his own space, Busey persisted. Everyone laughed and did their best to shrug it off at first, but the interview ultimately had to be cut short and he was escorted out.
#4. Dax Shepard Was Banned From 'Late Night with Conan O'Brien'
Source: Conan, NBC
Dax Shepard opened up about a major "rock-bottom" moment in his struggle with addiction during a new podcast interview. During the interview, Shepard fell over while trying to sit down, rambled incoherently, and frequently veered off-topic. Shepard said he also broke a coffee table and was banned for "some years" until he got sober. When he later brought up the incident on O'Brien's TBS show, Conan, all was forgiven. As O'Brien said, "Two-thirds of our guests are wasted, so I wouldn't worry about that."
#5. Bobcat Goldthwait Set 'The Tonight Show' Ablaze
Source: Tonight Show, NBC
On May 9th, 1994, Comedian Bobcat Goldthwait set fire to the guest chair on the Tonight Show With Jay Leno. It was no accident either, he just happened to have some lighter fluid with him, which he decided to spray all over the chair and then sets it on fire. His actions not only got him banned from the television for his destructive behavior, but he had to pay a $2,700 fine for the incident and had to pay nearly $700 for the cost of the chair. In addition to the monetary dues, he had obtained he was also forced to make fire safety public service announcements.
#6. Harmony Korine Was Banned From The 'Late Show with David Letterman' After He Was Caught With Meryl Streep's Purse
Source: Late Show With David, CBS
US talk show host David Letterman has revealed he banned director Harmony Korine from The Late Show after finding him going through Meryl Streep's purse backstage. Letterman then revealed the true story behind the incident in public for the first time. "I went upstairs to greet Meryl Streep and welcome her to the show, and I knock on the door … and she was not in there," he said. "And I looked around, and she was not in there, and I found Harmony going through her purse. True story. And so I said: 'That's it, put her things back in her bag and then get out.'"
#7. Howard Stern Has A Long-Standing Feud With Jay Leno Stemming From Stern's 1995 Appearance On 'The Tonight Show'
Source: NBC
For decades, Howard Stern and Jay Leno have shared an intense mutual dislike, which appears to stem from Stern's chaotic appearance on The Tonight Show in 1995. Stern walked onto the stage with two bikini-clad women and prompted the women to kiss each other. Throughout the segment, Stern continued to blur the line between guest and host, often talking over Leno and his other guests (Gene Siskel and Robert Ebert).
#8. Kathy Griffin's Been Banned From Pretty Much Every Show, Night Or Day
Source: Jimmy Kimmel Live!
Kathy Griffin is known for her controversial antics, such as stripping on live television. So it's no surprise that she's on the banned list of many shows that air at all times of the day. She has been banned from The Late Show for swearing too much (though this was reversed), from Today for making fun of the hosts, and from The View for telling an inappropriate joke about Howard Stern and Barbara Walters.
#9. Seth Meyers Banned Donald Trump In Retaliation
Source: NBC
In 2016, Late Night host Seth Meyers banned Donald Trump from the show. It was a retaliatory move in response to Trump's own ban - he revoked press credentials from The Washington Post after the news organization printed a headline he didn't like.
#10. Oprah Winfrey Wouldn't Go On The 'Late Show with David Letterman' For 16 Years
Source: CBS
After appearing on Late Night with David Letterman in 1989, Winfrey instituted a self-imposed ban, refusing to go on the show despite Letterman publicly prodding her. Winfrey described that what prompted her self-banning was actually her first appearance on Late Night: “It was a terrible experience for me. The guy in the audience started yelling, "Get her, Dave!" You were sort of baiting the audience, and there were a bunch of drunk guys down the front. I was trying to like, you know, mitigate the whole thing, and it felt so uncomfortable to me. I didn't want to have that experience again.”
#11. Vivica A. Fox Walked Out Of An Interview On 'Jimmy Kimmel Live!' After He Made Fun Of Star Jones
Source: Larry Busacca/Getty Images, Brian To/WENN.com
Fox appeared on Jimmy Kimmel Live in September 2005. Kimmel poked fun at Fox's friend Star Jones, "...and most harrowing of all, Star Jones' bridesmaid". Fox immediately claimed she didn't find his jokes about her friend to be
funny. "It goes both ways," Kimmel chided. "I'm desperate to make this work," he pleaded with his guest, who was on his show to plug her Lifetime crime drama Missing. "You know what? The four of us should get together, me, you, Star, and Al" Kimmel suggested. Fox responded grimly: "You would get your a** kicked.", then walked off the set and Kimmel had to spend the next segment focused on her empty chair. Later, Kimmel recounted the incident and claimed he thought Fox was on drugs. This is a particularly offensive diss toward the Set It Off actress, who has long been against drugs.
#12. Madonna Was Banned From Both Of Piers Morgan's Shows
Source: Ken McKay/ITV/REX
'Welcome to Twitter. You're still banned from my show,' Morgan writes to Madonna. He said she wasn't welcome on his CNN show, Piers Morgan Tonight because she was "boring" and "annoying." Despite the lack of response from Madonna on her alleged "ban," Morgan also called her "too vegan for TV" and said there was no reason to talk to her when he could talk to Lady Gaga instead.
#13. David Letterman Wouldn't Even Air Bill Hicks's Segment
Source: The Late Show, CBS
Comedian Bill Hicks’ 12th performance, on Letterman's Late Show, was deemed too controversial to even air. According to Hicks, the audience and Letterman enjoyed his routine. It wasn't until later that he was notified by the show's executive producer that CBS found his material too controversial and they'd be replacing him on the episode with another comedian. Later, CBS blamed the decision on Letterman and the show's producers.
#14. Jackie Mason Was Banned From 'The Ed Sullivan Show' Over A Misunderstanding
Source: The Ed Sullivan Show
While performing his set on the variety show, Mason looked off-camera and saw Sullivan gesturing with two fingers to signify he had two minutes remaining. The show was being cut shorter than planned due to an airing of a speech by President Lyndon Johnson. Mason began riffing and made a gesture towards Sullivan, pointing at him with his thumb and index finger. From Sullivan's vantage point, however, it appeared Mason was flipping Sullivan the bird. Irate, Sullivan banned Mason from the show and terminated the contract he had for six more episodes. The incident made it difficult for Mason to book any television gigs. He sued Sullivan for defamation, though the case was dismissed. Two years later, Sullivan realized his error and lifted the ban, and issued a public apology.
#15. Kelsey Grammer And Piers Morgan Had A Showdown Over The Actor's Ex-Wife
Source: Taylor Hill/FilmMagic; Noel Vasquez/Getty Images
When Kelsey Grammer went on Piers Morgan Tonight in 2012, he had one request: Don't show any pictures of his ex-wife, Camille Grammer-Meyer. The actor was willing to answer questions about his third wife, with whom he'd had an acrimonious divorce, but when her picture was shown in the opening credits, Grammer walked off the set moments before the interview. Morgan went a step further and announced that Grammer was barred from his show. But Grammer didn't seem keen to return.
#16. Johnny Carson Didn't Just Ban Joan Rivers From His Show - He Refused To Speak To Her For The Rest Of His Life
Source: Time & Life Pictures/Getty Image
This is a case where both people saw the situation entirely differently. Mr. Carson believed that Ms. Rivers was disloyal to him. Ms. Rivers believed Mr. Carson was trying to control her career but never really intended to advocate for her to get her own show on NBC (she also thought there was some sexism involved). She found out there was a list of possible hosts who would get the chance to replace Johnny when he retired, and she wasn’t on that list, even though she had gotten excellent ratings as his permanent guest host. So, she decided to take an offer to host her own show on another network. Johnny found out and was furious, not just because she was leaving, but because she would now be a competitor. Once he learned of her plans, they never spoke again. Plus, he made sure her show failed by telling potential guests that if they appeared with her, they would be banned from ever being on his (highly rated) program.
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