The Worst Things Celebrities Have Said Or Done In Response To The Pandemic Of 2020
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1Dave Portnoy Said The Virus Is A 'Mild Flu'
As the founder of the Barstool Sports blog and co-host of the podcast Barstool Rundown, Dave Portnoy lost much of his income when professional sports were canceled. He began calling himself a coronavirus "truther" and spoke out against the advice of health experts.
"It’s like a common cold," he said. On his podcast, he admitted he doesn't "care about the people dying, I don't care about a lot of things, I just care about my wallet."
On Twitter, he compared the virus to the flu, claimed it was "fraud, overreaction, or media concoction," and discouraged people from staying home. Many Twitter users were quick to reply in offense, with people commenting things like, "Stop being a selfish *sshole and stay the f*ck home," and, "Bro, knock this sh*t off. Stay home and tell others to do the same... Don't encourage more stupidity."
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After producers decided to shut down production of The Card Counter due to an actor testing positive for coronavirus, director Paul Schrader took his frustration to Facebook. "...I would have shot through hellfire rain to complete the film," he wrote. "What better way to die than on the job?" Unfortunately, not everyone agreed with his martyr-like approach to filmmaking.
"Endanger lives for a 'movie?'" one user commented. "Perhaps Paul you need to take long look in the mirror whether you should be making movies at all anymore. Seems to me you've lost touch with your humanity." The commenter also added, "Your film doesn't mean sh*t if someone dies on it, Paul." Others took a less hostile approach while sharing their outrage. "...Our whole industry is shut down," another user wrote. "I understand you may want to finish the job, but it puts hundreds of tradespeople at risk by continuing to shoot as normal."
Out of touch?When Evangeline Lilly posted an image of a teacup on Instagram and informed everyone that her children were "playing and laughing" at gymnastics camp after washing their hands, fans expressed their outrage at her failure to abide by social distancing and isolation protocols. "I've always been a fan of yours," one person wrote. "But I'm sorry, you are being extremely selfish and irresponsible with people's lives."
Unlike some other celebrities who were called out for their responses to the pandemic, Lilly stuck to her guns.
"Some people value their lives over freedom, some people value freedom over their lives," she responded in the post's comments. Lilly also brought politics into the argument, writing, "There's 'something' every election year," and argued citizens need to keep a "close eye on our leaders, making sure they don't abuse this moment to steal away more freedoms and grab more power."
The Ant-Man and the Wasp star later apologized on Instagram for her "arrogant" comments. Lilly wrote in her post that, "despite my intense trepidation over the socioeconomic and political repercussions of this course of action, PLEASE KNOW I AM DOING MY PART TO FLATTEN THE CURVE, PRACTICING SOCIAL DISTANCING AND STAYING HOME WITH MY FAMILY."
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- Georges Biard
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On April 20, MacDowell was spotted leaving a closed park in Los Angeles by crawling under the gate.
The park has been closed until April 30, due to the city's quarantine, yet the actress and her family ignored restrictions set in place to keep people safe.
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On April 20, a city employee reportedly spotted Tom Brady exercising in a closed park in Tampa, FL. Tampa mayor Jane Castor said, "Our parks are closed down, so a lot of our parks staff, they patrol around just to make sure people aren't in there with contact sports and things." When the city employee noticed someone working out on the grounds, "she went over to tell him that it was closed, and it was Tom Brady."
As of April 20, Tampa was still operating under stay-at-home orders. The city itself tweeted to the new Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback:
Sorry @TomBrady! Our @tampaparksrec team can't wait to welcome you and our entire community back with even bigger smiles - until then, stay safe and stay home as much as you can to help flatten the curve.
Out of touch?Ever the exhibitionist, Madonna filmed a video in which she shared her thoughts not from her backyard or couch, but from her bathtub. Hunched into an uncomfortable-looking position, the star sat in a tub lined with tea candles and sprinkled with rose petals as she addressed her fans.
She referred to COVID-19 as "the great equalizer" and said:
It doesn't care about how rich you are, how famous you are, how funny you are, how smart you are, where you live, how old you are, what amazing stories you can tell... What's terrible about it is what's great about it... What's terrible about it is that it's made us all equal in many ways - and what's wonderful about it is that it's made us all equal in many ways.
Madonna also referenced her song "Human Nature," saying, "We are all in the same boat and if the ship goes down, we're all going down together." Many fans immediately posted their offense, claiming Madonna's views were completely out of touch with the many people currently struggling to get by. "Sorry my queen, [I] love [you] so much, but we're not equal," one person wrote. "We can die from the same diseases, but the poor will suffer the most." Another asked, "If the ship is going down, do you really think we're going down together while you're in your bathtub having people working for you to be there?"
Madonna later deleted her post.
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In an Instagram Live video, Vanessa Hudgens shared her thoughts about coronavirus quarantine measures lasting well into the summer, saying:
Yeah... till July. Sounds like a bunch of bullsh*t, but, like, it's a virus - I get it. I respect it, but, at the same time, like, even if everybody gets it, like, yeah, people are gonna die. Which is terrible, but, like, inevitable? I don't know. Maybe I shouldn't [be] doing this right now.
Many fans agreed with her statement about not "doing this right now" and made their offense at Hudgens's apparent disregard for human lives known by calling her "irresponsible" and "heartless." The extreme backlash inspired Hudgens to publicly apologize on Twitter and make another Instagram video in which she claimed people took her words out of context.
"It's a crazy time," she said. "I am at home [on] lockdown, and that's what I hope you guys are doing, too... I don't take this situation lightly - by any means... Stay inside, y'all."
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From almost any other celebrity, this wouldn't inspire much outrage. Gwyneth Paltrow, however, has regularly been accused of endorsing pseudoscience and quack medicine, thanks to her personal wellness brand and series The Goop Lab.
So Paltrow inadvertently kicked up some dust by posting photos of herself on Instagram wearing a mask while medical professionals urged people to save masks for front-line workers. This was during the early days of the nationwide mask and supply shortage, before DIY solutions were on offer. People were also upset that Paltrow's mask was designer - the brand she's seen wearing reportedly sells them for just under $100, fueling a sense that the star might be out of touch.
"Glad you can wear your heavy-duty mask en route to Paris fashion week," one user commented. "Us common mortals have to bid on eBay at this point."
Paltrow also posted an image of herself wearing the mask and gloves while returning home from the farmers' market, and Instagram users again shared their outrage, pointing to Goop's history. "Why do you need gloves and a mask?" Dr. Jen Gunter asked on Twitter. "Isn't your immune boosting supplement that you were promoting at the start of flu season effective?"
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In her first episode back since the outbreak, Ellen compared the lockdown to being in prison, which sparked people online to point out the important distinction between being quarantined to her spacious home and being locked in any state or federal facility. Though her intentions were to take her viewers' minds off of what's happening and to "send love" to those who are sick, her comments came across as insensitive:
This is like being in jail, is what it is. Mostly because I’ve been wearing the same clothes for 10 days and everyone in here is gay.
One person on Twitter responded, "Yes very much like jail, except for the part where you still have your multimillion-dollar home and your voting rights." Another asked, "Did she run this joke by *literally* anyone?!?"
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As hospitals' supplies began to dwindle in late March, Pharrell Williams urged his followers to donate money to a GoFundMe for the Frontline Responders Fund. "Hospitals are running low on masks, gowns, and other critical items," he wrote on Twitter. "We need to replenish their supplies." Although his intentions may have been good, users criticized the music star for asking others to donate money while he possessed a reported net worth of $150 million.
"I've got about £13 in the bank," one user responded. "You give away $149 million and I'll give my £13." Another wrote, "You know you and your music/industry friends can knock this out easily right?" Others took Williams's post as a chance to bash all celebrities.
"There needs to be a celebrity-free Twitter," one person commented. "Like let them go play in a VIP section somewhere. I kinda miss the days of not knowing my fave's innermost thoughts."
Out of touch?Many people expressed outrage after Jaime King shared a video on Instagram that thanked the coronavirus. Riya Sokol originally created and posted the two-minute video, and opened the piece with the words, "Thank you, coronavirus."
The voiceover continued:
Thank you for shaking us and showing us we are dependent on something much bigger than we think. Thank you for making us appreciate the luxury we lived in, the abundance of product, freedom, health, and realizing we were taking it for granted.
People immediately responded in anger by calling King "tone-deaf."
"This is such a privileged outlook," one user wrote. "It shouldn't take a worldwide pandemic and national lockdown for people to realize the toll they are taking on the planet..."
Others understood the message but thought the timing of the post was off, as another person commented, "I know people want to see the silver lining in this but that type of thinking is way too early especially when we haven't even [seen] the worst of it."
King later deleted the post.
Out of touch?Gal Gadot wanted to do something to help people and gathered celebrities to sing a cover of John Lennon's "Imagine." Gadot recruited a choir of notable stars including Amy Adams, Jimmy Fallon, Sarah Silverman, Mark Ruffalo, Kristen Wiig, and Will Ferrell to participate. Each sang lyrics via video on their phone from their locations in isolation, and Gadot posted the video on Instagram. "You know this virus has affected the entire world, everyone," she said in the video. "Doesn't matter who you are, where you're from, we're all in this together."
Angered fans immediately called Gadot and the others out for trying and failing to seem "relatable" to the millions out of work or concerned for the health of their families. "To Gal Gadot and all the rich celebrities in that video with money, top insurance, and are out of touch to the struggle of everyday American[s] during this time: The struggle is real," one person wrote. "People are losing their jobs and they don’t need a Beatle song trying to make it better."
Out of touch?While many celebrities created videos and social media posts urging people to stay home, some appeared out of touch while doing so. As the former governor of California, Arnold Schwarzenegger has experience addressing the public about safety issues, and he posted a video on Twitter in which he encouraged people to follow isolation restrictions.
Unfortunately, his message fell flat as he chose to film the video while sitting in a hot tub and smoking a cigar. This display of comfort and wealth immediately turned off many people, and they expressed anger at the unfairness they perceived. "Easier to stay at home when your home is like that, isn't it?" one user wrote. Another commented, "If only we all had a home like yours we would never leave - regardless of what's going on."
Out of touch?The internet promptly freaked out after Bryan Adams criticized wet markets on Instagram. In his social media post, the musician, whose tenancy at the Royal Albert Hall was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, castigated the "bat eating... greedy b*stards" who run and patronize wet markets. He also encouraged people to go vegan.
National Geographic describes wet markets as "typically large collections of open-air stalls selling fresh seafood, meat, fruits, and vegetables." Common throughout China, some of these markets butcher live animals on site. Some theorize that the novel coronavirus originated in one of these wet markets in Wuhan, China. However, despite initial concerns that bats spread the virus to humans, there is no direct evidence of bat-to-human transmission.
Yahoo News referred to Adams's post as a "bizarre, xenophobic rant," and many Twitter users agreed. The day after the inciting post, Adams apologized "to any and all that took offense to my posting yesterday. No excuse, I just wanted to have a rant about the horrible animal cruelty in these wet markets being the possible source of the virus, and promote veganism."
Out of touch?Sia drew people's attention after posting a graphic on Twitter that featured the word "VIRUS" with the first three letters scribbled out. She titled the post "US" with a heart emoji. Many users responded by creating and posting their own versions of the graphic, including "PANDEMIC" with several letters scribbled out to leave "PANIC." Another person wrote, "You can't spell funeral without fun."
Many others asked why Sia wasn't donating money or doing something more impactful than posting graphics on Twitter. "So you giving any money or," one user wrote. Other comments included, "Open your purse for US" with a heart emoji, and, "[Thanks] for fixing it, Sia."
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Liam Gallagher made light of the pandemic when a Twitter user asked him what he thought of the situation. Apparently, Gallagher had been just as nervous as the rest of the world. "It's very confusing scary though," he wrote. "I feel like I've had it 7 times last few days then realized the house is just hot." He later tweeted, "A choo."
The fan admitted to feeling bad for laughing at Gallagher's response. Although Gallagher's words may have seemed insensitive to some, many fans laughed or replied, "Bless you." Gallagher later uploaded several videos of himself promoting hand-washing while singing parody versions of Oasis songs such as "Champaign Soapernova" and "Wonderwash," which many fans appreciated.
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