10. Paparazzi-For-Hire
If you look at a picture in a tabloid or on a gossip website, and it looks like the celebrity is posing in a staged photo, they probably are. In 2016, a photographer revealed that many celebs stage their pictures to have better control over their image. Kim Kardashian is one star who keeps her personal paparazzo on speed dial. She texts the photographer regularly and flies him around the world to photograph her. Kardashian reviews every image, and they're heavily photoshopped before they're sold to magazines.
Long before Kardashian had the paparazzi in the palm of her hand, Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag of MTV's The Hills had a 50/50 agreement with a company named Pacific Coast News. They would pose for "cheesy over-the-top shots" that were then sold to magazines across the globe. Pratt called it "the best gig ever," and he and Montag raked in over $1 million by selling their pictures. Celebs consider it a working relationship that's mutually beneficial for everyone who's involved, and their fans are usually clueless that the "candid" photos are carefully crafted before they're ever released to the public.
9. Illegal Substances Are Allowed On Set
Sometimes, all it takes is an illicit drug for an actor or actress to put on their best performance. Tinseltown has been known to allegedly supply many A-list stars with a never-ending flow of their favorite vice.
Legendary actor Dennis Quaid revealed he had a "casual" addiction to cocaine before he even became a huge star. When he first moved to Los Angeles in 1974, he dabbled with the drug here and there, but things didn't get out of control until he was booked to appear in mainstream films. He also revealed that cocaine was listed in the budgets of movies—disguised as "petty cash" to keep the drug-fueled sets a secret. He claimed the drug was freely given out on movie sets because it was the norm, and it was something that everyone was doing. Looking back on it, he called his cocaine addiction one of his biggest mistakes. The actor said being addicted to the drug caused his entire life to fall apart.
Even Jack Nicholson has spoken candidly about his drug use. In a 1980 interview, he said, "Drugs ain't no big thing," and he still loved to get high "about four days a week."
8. Publicity Stunts
Hollywood is no stranger to publicity stunts, and there's no limit to how far the industry will go to get the public's attention. Back in 2014, there was a lot of talk about Kanye West and Kim Kardashian fighting for a spot on the cover of Vogue. When the magazine's editor-in-chief, Anna Wintour, finally decided to place them on the front page of the fashion magazine, she created an intense firestorm. Some readers threatened to cancel their Vogue subscriptions, calling Kimye disgraceful and inappropriate for the iconic publication.
Wintour later went on the record and said if the magazine had stuck with "tasteful" cover stars, no one would have batted an eye. But by placing West and Kardashian on the cover, she drummed up some much-needed publicity for the magazine. In the entertainment world, any kind of attention is good, even if it's bad.
7. Eating Disorders
The pressure to look beautiful and thin has caused some stars to suffer from eating disorders. Being in front of the spotlight means they're put underneath a microscope 24/7. Not only are they judged by their fans and the public, but sometimes their agents and managers can pressure them to drop pounds in unhealthy ways, too.
Demi Lovato remembered at the age of "2 or 3 years old," she would look down at her belly and wonder if it would ever be flat. As she grew older, she struggled with an eating disorder and would relapse after difficult periods in her life. After breaking up with her ex, Wilmer Valderrama, she binged and purged because she missed him.
