When Alec Baldwin Lost it on a Plane and Other Celebrity Meltdowns
Celebrities are notorious for getting away with antics that any normal person would get in trouble for. And apparently this sense of entitlement travels because there have been numerous A-list meltdowns on planes over the years.
"Celebrities are surrounded by yes people and feel like the rules don’t apply to them and hate not being in control," says celebrity psychologist Dr. Jenn Berman. "On commercial airlines there are lots of rules and regulations for safety purposes and some of these big personalities don’t know how to handle that."
Unfortunately for some Hollywood heavyweights, airline safety precautions trump any “Don’t you know who I am” comments. Here, the top 10 celebrity freak-outs on a plane.
Who: Alec Baldwin
Incident: He may be known for being funny on screen, but Alec Baldwin’s real-life verbal and physical assaults have made headlines. One such instance took place on an American Airlines flight when the comedian refused to turn off his electronic device because he was in an intense game of Words with Friends.
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The actor should have used his words more carefully because according to a passenger he started screaming and the beating the walls of the bathroom forcing him to be kicked off the flight.
Who: Dolores O’Riordan
Incident: Apparently singer Dolores O’Riordan didn’t follow her own advice on the Cranberries’ album “No Need to Argue” because that’s exactly what she did onboard an Aer Lingus flight from New York to Shannon. She was removed from the plane by officers after allegedly assaulting a member of airline staff and head butting a police officer who tried to arrest her.
Related: Cranberries Lead Singer Arrested After Allegedly Attacking Flight Attendant
In an interview she defended herself, saying she was wearing a mask during the flight out of concern over stalkers following her and when she was cornered she lashed out.
Who: Kevin Smith
Incident: We might actually be on Kevin Smith’s side on his freak out. The director was asked to get off a Southwest flight in Oakland, California because his weight and size were a safety concern. He later took to Twitter and YouTube to release 24 video statements complaining about the prejudice.
Who: Billie Joe Armstrong
Incident: Who knew that Southwest Airlines had a dress code policy? Well, apparently they do because Green Day singer Billie Joe Armstrong was asked to leave a flight from Oakland to Burbank for wearing his pants too low.
A Southwest Airlines employee requested that the singer pull up his pants. And after he refused sternly, he was taken off the flight. The airline later apologized.
Who: Gerard Depardieu
Incident: We’ve all been there: stuck on a delayed flight with panic quickly setting in. That’s what happened to Gerard Depardieu while wait for a flight to depart from Paris to Dublin. The French acting legend wasn’t allowed to use the restroom prior to take off, so he took matters into his own hands by relieving himself into a bottle. But, he didn’t have great aim because he soaked the cabin floor. Despite offering to clean it up, he was still escorted off the plane.
Who: Liam Gallagher
Incident: Known mostly for arguing with his brother and band mate, Liam Gallagher picked a fight on a Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong to Perth over the dissatisfaction of his scone. This little pastry reportedly set the singer into a rage, causing him to threaten the pilot.
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Passengers also complained Oasis band members refused to stop smoking, threw objects at people, and swore at flight attendants. Liam was banned from Cathay Pacific for life.
Who: Naomi Campbell
Incident: Losing a bag on a flight is miserable. For Naomi Campbell, it was the end of her world. At least that’s how she acted on a British Airways flight from London to Los Angeles when one of her bags went missing. The supermodel went into a rage, screaming at the crew and demanding the captain get off the aircraft and look for her suitcase. It didn’t stop there; she also kicked and spit at police officers that had to forcibly remove her from the plane. She later plead guilty to assault.
Who: Ivana Trump
Incident: Let’s face it, no one likes loud kids on a plane. If you’re Ivana Trump, you loathe them. The former Mrs. Donald Trump reportedly flipped out at some children on a flight from Palm Beach to New York when they ran past her yelling, causing her to start swearing at them and other passengers.
The plane was forced to return to the gate, and a livid Ivana was escorted off the plane.
Who: Dave Chappelle
Incident: Even private planes aren’t safe from the wrath of celebrities. Dave Chappelle was on a private jet from New Jersey to Ohio and needed to go to the bathroom. It must have been urgent because he refused to wear his seat belt, walked into the cockpit, and grabbed the pilot’s arm for an answer on how much longer the flight would be. The pilot was forced to make an emergency landing to satisfy the comedian’s needs.
Who: Jonathan Rhys Meyers
Incident: This hunky Irish actor is well known to the airlines, not for his frequent flier status, but for his onboard drunken antics. He was arrested in 2007 in a Dublin Airport while drunk and charged with two offenses.
Related: What’s That Stench? 10 Ways to Get Yourself Kicked Off a Plane
In 2009, he attacked the staff at Charles de Gaulle Airport when they refused to continue serving him. And one year later he got banned from United Airlines after getting drunk in the first-class lounge and using abusive, racist language at JFK Airport in New York.