Counting down the most awkward celeb interviews
Cara Delevingne’s appearance on California morning show is latest in long line of convos gone wrong
Cara Delevingne’s new movie Paper
Towns has just arrived in theatres, but it’s her small-screen appearance on a California morning show that’s making headlines.
In a promotional interview on Good Day Sacramento, the English supermodel was a cross between apathetic and out-to-lunch, so much so that the interviewers eventually cut the exchange short, telling her to “take a little nap” and “maybe get a Red Bull.” Delevingne says it was a clash of sensibilities (those West-Coast bobble heads just don’t understand the dry British wit).
Whatever the case, it was painful to watch, though certainly not the first time a celebrity interview has veered into the intensely awkward. Here we rank some of the more memorable ones — from slightly cringeworthy to crawl-into-a-hole-and-die.
7. Jennifer Aniston vs. Chris Stark (2014)
Promoting her pretty horrible movie Horrible Bosses 2, Aniston goes along with a prank on her laddish BBC 1 interviewer by pretending to be a typical tough interview (though she’s nowhere near as disagreeable as real-life Cara Delevingne). It seems that even when playing an insensitive diva, the Friends star is still on the softer side of frosty. Things do get a little prickly when Stark asks if it’s difficult to pick up men as a movie star, and Jen responds that she’s in a committed relationship (and not trolling for dudes at the bar). The money moment: When the prank is revealed, Stark is so overcome with relief and anger that he starts crying on screen. Jen — true to form — finds him a tissue. 6. Christina Hendricks vs. Kate Waterhouse (2012) Apparently hell hath no fury like a full-figured woman . . . who’s sick of being asked about her “full figure.” Doing an interview to promote a line of spectacles, the Mad Men actress gets asked about being an inspiration for the curvy sisterhood. When Hendricks tries to deflect, the interviewer re-asks the same question. It’s sort of like watching a GIF loop: just a lot more embarrassing. The money moment: After being called the double f-words twice in 30 seconds, Hendricks throws up her hands in disbelief.
5. Cate Blanchett vs. Jonathan Hyla (2015)
The thinking person’s sex symbol doesn’t have a lot of patience for puffy inquiries. She demonstrated this on the red carpet, when she asked whether the guys are subjected to sweeping, full-body camera shots. She showed it again during an interview junket for her recent Cinderella remake.
When asked if she was in the mood to crack a beer, Blanchett shot back that she didn’t touch the stuff and would prefer a special type of vodka made in Devon (not that she’s high maintenance or anything).
Next the interviewer asked about how she got her character’s pet cat to walk with a leash. “That’s your f-ing question?” the Oscar winner marvelled before cutting the interview short. The money moment: See afore-
mentioned f-bomb. 4. Tom Cruise vs. Matt Lauer (2007) His infamous couch jumping explosion on Oprah got more attention, but when it comes to serious awkward factor, the war of words between L. Ron Hubbard’s most famous disciple and Today Show host Matt Lauer takes the cringeworthy cake. Speaking out against both psychiatry and antidepressants, Cruise is manic, unreasonable and, yes, totally hard to watch. The money moment: When Cruise accuses Lauer of being “glib.” 3. Joan Rivers vs. Fredricka Whitfield (2014) In a split-screen interview to promote her final book, Diary of a Mad Diva, Rivers shoots back against a CNN anchor’s suggestions that her comedy could be considered mean and/or offensive. Rivers eventually walks off the stage, telling Whitfield that she obviously does not understand comedy. Her parting tirade is pretty amazing.
Now that Rivers is no longer with us, Whitfield is probably honoured to have been dressed down by the best. The money moment: The entire last 15 seconds are epic. 2. Jesse Eisenberg vs. Romina Puga (2013) The Social Network star took his whole pretentious killjoy shtick to the next level while promoting his magic movie Now You See Me with a vlogger named Romina Puga.
When Puga refers to Eisenberg’s co-star Morgan Freeman simply as “Freeman” (a fairly standard convention), Eisenberg takes offence, telling Puga not to “call him Freeman, like you’re on a little league softball team with him.” Things deteriorate to the point that she actually calls him a jerk on camera. The money moment: When Eisenberg calls Puga the “Carrot Top of interviewers.” 1. Crispin Glover vs. David Letterman (1987) An oldie, but a goodie, this exchange is to awkward celebrity interviews what Shakespeare was to the English sonnets.
It’s not necessarily funny, since Glover (who mostly does art films, but starred as Michael J. Fox’s dad in the Back to the Future series), seems pretty unbalanced, and is maybe having a mental breakdown as the interview moves along.
It is possibly the only time that Letterman ever left the stage during an interview, though it’s hard to blame him. The money moment: Probably the karate kick that Glover directs at Letterman’s head, but there are lots to choose from.