Why Everyone’s Talking About These Hollywood Feud

In the world of boxing, hyping up a fight with your opponent is just another part of the game. But the feud between Muhammad Ali and Joe Frazier found its way out of the ring when Ali claimed that Frazier had “no cause” and that he was “in it for the money alone.” After Ali defeated Frazier in 1971, Frazier continued to speak poorly about his opponent, even decades later in his 1996 memoir, Smokin’ Joe.

When Carly Simon released her hit song “You’re So Vain” in 1972, fans everywhere speculated as to whom it was about. The subject of the ripping breakup song remained a mystery, with Simon saying it was a compilation of exes, but she would never reveal their identities—until 2015.  Simon confirmed the second verse was about actor Warren Beatty, then said, “Warren thinks the whole thing is about him!”

Marlon Brando made headlines in 1973 when he not only refused to attend the Academy Awards, but he refused to accept his award for Best Actor for his portrayal of Vito Corleone in The Godfather. Instead, the actor sent Sacheen Littlefeather to refuse the award in his place and read a speech explaining that he was protesting the event due to America’s mistreatment of Native Americans.

The singing duo’s show ended in 1974, and shortly after so did the couple’s nine-year marriage. Sonny filed for a separation later that year, which Cher followed with divorce filings, citing “involuntary servitude” as the cause of divorce. Cher accused her husband of withholding money they earned as a duo from her and a bitter custody battle over their child ensued. Their divorce was finalized in 1975 and within days Cher married Allman Brothers singer Gregg Allman.

There’s no celebrity feud quite like a family celebrity feud and these sisters live on in infamy over their squabbles. The actresses were said to have competed with one another all their lives, a dynamic that only intensified once they began competing for Hollywood roles. Fontaine spoke of her sister, stating, “I got married first, got an Academy Award first, had a child first. If I die, she’ll be furious, because again I’ll have got there first!” Their feud came to a head in 1975 when their mother passed away. De Havilland says that Fontaine didn’t bother to go to the funeral, while Fontaine claims de Havilland didn’t invite her. Either way, the sisters didn’t speak for 35 years and didn’t reconcile before Fontaine’s death in 2013.

Honestly, the details of the feud between the Saturday Night Live cast members are pretty fuzzy. The story goes that Chevy Chase’s career took off and he left SNL in 1976, after which Murray officially joined the show. But when Chase returned in season 3 to host, there was bad blood between the two men, which boiled over into a fistfight during rehearsals.

Ready for *the* feud of all celebrity feuds? The disdain between these leading ladies spanned over four decades. The rivalry between the stars, who were constantly throwing jabs at one another in the press, peaked when they co-starred in the 1968 drama What Ever Happened to Baby Jane? and Davis was nominated for an Oscar, but Crawford was not. When Crawford died in 1977, Davis gave one final dig, saying, “You should never say bad things about the dead, only good… Joan Crawford is dead. Good,” according to the Los Angeles Times.

Bianca Jagger was left fuming when her husband strayed one too many times, and the last straw was his affair with model Jerry Hall. Bianca filed for divorce on the grounds of adultery and the divorce was finalized in 1978. Mick Jagger went on to eventually marry Jerry Hall, though their union didn’t turn out amicable either.

Kramer vs. Kramer? More like Streep vs. Hoffman. The celebrity co-stars barely got on better than the divorcing couple they portrayed on-screen. There were reportedly several instances on-set when the co-stars argued. Looking back now, Streep says that Hoffman was “overstepping” by being physical with her while filming a heated scene. “This was my first movie, and it was my first take in my first movie, and he just slapped me. And you see it in the movie. It was overstepping,” Streep told The New York Times.

After years with The Eagles, Glenn Frey announced in 1980 that he was leaving the group and embarking on a solo career. Frey said his decision was made after a benefit concert on July 31, 1980, where California Senator Allan Cranston met with the group before the show. Frey felt that his bandmate, Don Felder, made a disrespectful comment to the Senator, which led to an on-stage confrontation. “We’re onstage, and Felder looks back at me and says, ‘Only three more songs till I kick your ass, pal.’ And I’m saying, ‘Great. I can’t wait,'” Frey told Rolling Stone. The group reunited in 1994, but it wasn’t long before more drama emerged, including legal proceedings.

Growing up, Jane Fonda didn’t have the best relationship with her father, famous actor Henry Fonda. But in 1980, the actress purchased the rights to On the Golden Pond, and the two starred in the film about an elderly father and his daughter resolving their issues while she cared for him. The film reportedly helped ease some of the tensions between the father-daughter duo and earned Henry his final Oscar.

When two pop icons release huge albums just a month apart, you’ve got a sure-fire recipe for a feud. That was the case when Prince debuted 1999 in October and MJ quickly followed suit with Thriller. The two late stars stayed quiet at the time, so not much more is known about why they butted heads, but according to Rolling Stone editor and Jackson biographer Steve Knopper, that silence was intentional. “I think both of those guys had an interest in keeping it somewhat mysterious because they are both mysterious dudes,” he told Esquire.

An argument between the Love Story star and his 18-year-old son—who was just starting his own acting career—turned physical one day in May at the home of Farah Fawcett, Ryan’s then-girlfriend. Griffin tried a wrestling hold on Ryan, who retaliated by knocking out his son’s two front teeth. Shortly thereafter, Griffin was sent to a Hawaiian rehab for his issues with drugs. In 2015, a 50-year-old Griffin revealed he was finally 3 1/2 years sober, but he was not in touch with his father, who was arrested in 2007 for allegedly assaulting Griffin with a deadly weapon.

In 1983, Williams was on top of the world as the first Black Miss America. But her life came crumbling down the following year when softcore magazine Penthouse announced it’d be publishing scandalous photos from her past. Two years prior, she’d posed nude for a shoot under the promise that she would not be “identifiable” in the photos and that they’d never be released. The photographer betrayed her and Penthouse ran them without her consent, forcing her to hand over the crown. She initially filed a lawsuit against both the photographer and the magazine, but dropped the case to move on with her life. By 1995, she was singing the theme song for Pocahontas, so it’s pretty clear who came out on top here.

At the tail end of the year, bassist Roger Waters announced he was leaving the legendary rock group. Tensions had risen with Gilmour while working on their album The Final Cut, and, well, Waters was no longer feeling “comfortably numb.” The next year, Waters took the guitarist, Gilmour, as well as drummer, Nick Mason, to court to stop them from performing as Pink Floyd without him. They eventually made up and Waters has since admitted to regretting the legal battle.

Long before she was eviscerating fugly red carpet dresses, Rivers was a staple of The Tonight Show With Johnny Carson. She filled in for the host frequently and eventually became the show’s permanent guest host. So it was quite a shock when she left to host her own show, The Late Show Starring Joan Rivers. Carson felt betrayed and banned her from appearing on his show, which his replacement Jay Leno continued through his tenure. It wasn’t until Jimmy Fallon took over the reins in 2014 that Rivers was finally allowed to grace the set again.

Like MJ and Prince before them, these ‘80s pop stars first battled it out on the charts—Gibson’s first album Out of the Blue dropped in August, while Tiffany’s self-titled debut arrived the following month. The two were pitted against one another in the press, but Gibson told Oprah in 2015 that the rivalry was overblown. “Debbie and I have really never been friends—up until now, which is funny,” she said, before revealing where the source of the drama may have originated. “I think, also, a lot of management and maybe record labels like that rivalry,” she said. “It keeps a little edge.”

Dynasty soap star Joan Collins and her salacious novelist sister Jackie Collins were known for their sibling rivalry. It reportedly came to a head when Joan stepped on Jackie’s toes by securing a multimillion-dollar book deal with Jackie’s publisher. The ladies always saved face in the press though, with Jackie telling the Los Angeles Times they’re “perfectly good friends.” Sure.

Now known for his bizarre, anti-LGBTQ tweets, James Woods was once embroiled in an even more bizarre battle with his The Woods co-star, Sean Young. The two allegedly had an affair while filming the movie, but after Woods dumped her to go back to his fiancée, Young reportedly went Fatal Attraction on his ass. Reports of the affair came from on-set sources, but the rest was all according to Woods, who sued Young for “intentional infliction of emotional distress.” She denied it and the matter was settled out of court.

O’Connor caused an uproar when she refused to allow the National Anthem to be played before a concert of hers at New Jersey’s Garden State Arts Center, which was the venue’s tradition. Sinatra performed at the Center a few days later and told the audience that O’Connor should leave the country, but also that he’d like to meet her, so he could “kick her in the ass.” She responded the next year, saying, “I can’t hit this man back, he’s, like, 78 years of age, and I’d probably kill him.”

Campbell was one of the biggest supermodels on the planet, having graced the covers of many magazines, and was the first Black woman on French Vogue. But come Paris Fashion Week in 1991, Banks was the hot new thing smizing her way to It Girl status. She was heralded as the “new Naomi,” which didn’t sit well with the Naomi. By 1993, Campbell reportedly straight-up refused to walk a Chanel runway with Banks, giving Karl Lagerfeld an ultimatum: “It’s her or me.”

The biggest beef in late-night history reached the sizzling point when Leno officially began hosting The Tonight Show, replacing Johnny Carson. The problem? David Letterman, who hosted his own NBC show in the slot after Carson’s, was widely expected to land the gig. The 1991 shocker led to an appearance where Carson asked Letterman, “Just how pissed off are you?” Letterman replied, albeit jokingly, “You keep using language like that, you’re going to find yourself out of a job.” By ’92, Letterman had left NBC for CBS to helm Late Night With David Letterman—right opposite Leno’s time-slot.

Now this is a story all about how … Aunt Viv’s life got flipped-turned upside down. Janet Hubert starred as the matriarch on The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air for three seasons, but was suddenly fired in 1993 and replaced with Daphne Maxwell Reid. Smith addressed the exit in a radio interview: “I can say straight up that Janet Hubert wanted the show to be The Aunt Viv of Bel-Air Show because I know she is going to dog me in the press.” That she did.

These ice princesses were both at the top of their game when Kerrigan was brutally attacked after a practice for the U.S. Figure Skating Championships. As Kerrigan lay on the ground famously crying, “Why? Why? Why?” the scandal became a national obsession. As it turned out, Harding’s ex-husband had hired help to break Kerrigan’s leg so rival Tonya could skate her way to victory at the Olympics six weeks later. With a limp and a bruise, Kerrigan was unable to compete at the Championships the next day, handing Harding the win—though it was never clear whether Harding played any role whatsoever in planning the attack. Luckily for Kerrigan, she recovered in time for the Olympics and ended up defeating her rival.

The Princess and her husband, Prince Charles, had separated way back in 1992, and the dissolution of the royal couple’s marriage was a source of endless fascination. In 1994, Charles admitted to cheating on her with Camilla Parker Bowles, and the following year, Princess Di finally sat down for her first solo interview. “There were three of us in this marriage, so it was a bit crowded,” she revealed, while also admitting she’d been unfaithful. It got so much attention that a month later, the Queen wrote the pair a letter telling them to hurry up and divorce already.