Most of us can agree that 2018 has been anything but boring. While you may be looking to the new year with anticipation, we always think it’s helpful to look back and reflect. They say hindsight is 20/20, and we can only wonder what those in the spotlight have learned during the last year of their lives. As usual, a lot of people in the entertainment world became involved in scandals and career-ending plots. While you may have forgotten about 2018’s greatest occurrences, we’re here to remind you about what exactly happened in Hollywood. It may be too soon to tell which celebrities have truly ended their careers (and which ones may manage successful comebacks) but we’ve accessed the damage, and we certainly have some predictions. The good news is that a fair number of stars also managed to take their careers to new heights, and actually managed to find success during this challenging year. Think you can guess which ones made our list? Join us in our countdown as we explore the best and worst happenings of the entertainment world in 2018.
20
Rihanna’s Net Worth Skyrocketed With The Creation Of Fenty
She’s already conquered the world of music, and this year Rihanna took two major forays into the worlds of film and beauty. Sure, she played the the brilliant hacker Nine Ball in Ocean’s Eight, but that wasn’t even her biggest accomplishment of the year. After initially launching her Fenty Beauty line in 2017, Rihanna was its success skyrocket in 2018. The brand successfully addressed a major gap in the beauty market, which is notorious for offering less options for darker skin tones. The aptly dubbed “Fenty Effect” has led many other beauty brands to scrabble as they seek to claim a piece of the market Fenty has claimed. Time reports that the brand made $100 million in its first 40 days, and is now available in 29 countries. Basically, Rihanna never has to sing again.
19
Kayne West Had His Most Controversial Year Yet
Kayne was at it again this year with the controversial tweets and odd behavior. It’s as much a part of his brand as clothes with holes and narcissism, but this year he took it to a whole nother level. In addition to aligning himself with the highly controversial American president, Kayne forced many of his friends to publicly toe the line between being loyal to their friend and agreeing that he had, in fact, given them plenty of reason to worry. Many find it ironic that Kayne’s ever so loyal wife Kim Kardashian has done more for the people than he has in ages, and rumors are that she too has struggled with his endless twitter ramblings. Because he has one of the most loyal fan bases in music, Kayne remains a Hollywood staple. Still, he’s never come closer to ending his own career. We imagine his team will recommend he pull back in the new year.
18
Camila Cabello’s First Solo Album Went Platinum
Former Fifth Harmony member Camila Cabello’s solo career did not launch uneventfully. A plethora of rumors surrounded her departure, which her band mates seemed unhappy about despite pursuing solo endeavors soon after. It seems that the dust still hasn’t settled between the women, but it’s unlikely Camila has any regrets considering how well she’s fared on her own. Her admirably honest debut Camila features a balance between catchy pop hits (we still can’t get “Havana” out of our heads) and vulnerable ballads. After debuting at #1 on the Billboard 200, the album went platinum, as did the single “Havana.” Only one thing allowed Camila to trump this massive career success: former President Barack Obama declaring Havana one of his favorite songs. We’d say this former harmonizer made the right choice.
17
Kevin Hart Had To Step Down From Hosting The Oscars
Kevin Hart may still be a wildly successful comedian, but he certainly had a fall from grace this year. After coming back from the scandal of cheating on his pregnant wife, he manged to stay off the radar for most of the year. We said most. Soon after Thanksgiving, Kevin and his wife found themselves in hot water after throwing their son a Cowboys vs. Indians party. Kevin chose not to apologize for the incident, and instead went into a long-winded defense on his radio show Straight From The Hart. Most of the public quickly forgot, and weeks later Kevin was announced as next year’s Oscar host. Upon the announcement, a series of homophobic tweets Kevin had made in the past came to light. Again, Kevin opted not to apologize, thus leading to him being forced to step down as the Oscars host. Clearly, his career is considerably resilient, but we can only imagine that he doesn’t have too many strikes left.
16
Awkwafina Starred In Two Of The Summer’s Biggest Blockbusters
Among Rihanna’s famed costars in Ocean’s 8 was comedian, rapper, and actress Awkwafina. After initially making her debut into the entertainment world with the comedy rap track “My Vag,” she began a career as an Internet creator. She begin venturing intro traditional media afterwards, and had arguably the most successful year of her career in 2018. In addition to Ocean’s 8, the star also played Goh Peik Lin in Crazy Rich Asians. Starring in two of the year’s most successful films certainly boads well for the star, and she’s already planning to follow up her success with her sophomore album, in addition to starring in the Angry Birds 2 movie, Rolling Stone reports.
15
Matt Damon’s Insensitive Comments Angered A Lot Of Female Celebrities
Considered a Hollywood staple and classic heartthrob by many, Matt Damon’s recent controversies have served as a reflection of changing times. While older generations swear by the actor, 2018 has not been so fond of him. After his bromance partner Ben Affleck and his brother Casey Affleck ended up on the wrong side of the MeToo movement, Matt added fuel to the fire by angering a great deal of female celebrities. Matt made some comments questioning how far the movement would go and why it wasn’t choosing to applaud men that hadn’t done anything wrong (presumably himself) and female celebrities in turn questioned his eagerness for a reward. Actresses Alyssa Milano, Evan Rachel Wood, and Minnie Driver (an ex) all went to Twitter to speak their minds. Matt eventually apologized on the Today show, but we still haven’t forgiven him for The Great Wall. Tsk, tsk.
14
Ariana Grande Had Her First Number One Single
We know, it seems like a typo. “Thank u, next” was in fact Ariana Grande’s first number one single. Between “The Way,” “God Is A Woman,” “Problem,” “Dangerous Woman,” and so many more hits, it just doesn’t seem to make sense. Ariana has had considerable success in the music industry since “The Way;” this year’s Sweetener was her third number one album, but it’s still significant that she’s finally received her first number one single. Not only is “Thank u, next” iconic because of the film references and cameos in the music video, it also allowed the singer to turn her personal struggles into career success. This year, Ariana broke up with Mac Miller, began dating and quickly became engaged to Pete Davidson, mourned the loss of Mac after his overdose, and broke off her engagement with Pete. Most people would take a break after all she’s experienced, instead, she’s buried herself deeper into her work, and it’s paid off.
13
Pete Davidson Struggled Under The Spotlight
Pete Davidson’s relationship with the public this year has been almost as tumultuous as his romantic life. His whirlwind romance with Ariana Grande certainly required some getting used to. First people were confused by the pair, then Pete’s disregard for political correctness quickly angered the masses, and somehow this has all culminated in sympathy as the public have refocused on his transparency about his mental health struggles. Nothing changed about the man, but in dating one of the world’s biggest pop stars, his spotlight grew. Living under a larger microscope has clearly exacerbated Pete’s mental health struggles (he’s taking a break from social media) and resulted in greater criticism of everything he does. The world can’t seem to decide how it feels about him, and there’s no telling what that may do to his career.
12
Idris Elba Was People’s Sexiest Man Alive
He was many people’s sexiest man alive even without the title, but the formality was still significant. Forty-six year old Idris is many people’s pick for the next Bond. He’s starred in both TV and big screen hits like The Wire and Thor and so far, he’s kept himself scandal free. Considering what a year 2018 was in Hollywood, this in itself was an accomplishment. Early this year, Idris proposed to his girlfriend Sabrina Dhowre at a film premiere, People reported. No word yet on whether the actor will be playing the iconic Bond role, but with such a successful year under his belt, anything could happen.
11
Roseanne Barr Had Her Show Renewed And Canceled
For many, Roseanne was a nostalgia-inducing cult classic. Many were onboard with the reboot, as dreaded as reboots often are, this one seemed to be fairing well. That is, until people realized it was best to leave an actress like Roseanne Barr in the past. Quickly, people protested against a “humorous”past photoshoot she’d done in the likeness of Adolf Hitler. It wasn’t enough to end her career, but Roseanne decided to remind the world that her views hadn’t altered much, after openly identifying as a member of the alt-right, her fatal tweet was predictably racist and Islamophobic. This time, ABC was quick to pull the plug, Forbes reported. Instead, the show was re-rebooted to exclude Roseanne. Both the character and the actor’s fate were sealed.
10
Cardi B Broke A Ton Of Music Records
Like Ariana, Cardi had a great of deal of career success counteracted by a complicated personal year. The rapper became engaged and married to Migos rapper Offset. They had a daughter together, and months later Cardi announced she was filing for divorce (it seems Offset had cheated on her multiple times throughout the course of their relationship). While Cardi seems to be making as many headlines for the drama that surrounds her as for her music, she has broken quite a few records. Her number one debut album, Invasion of Privacy, made her only the fifth female rapper to top the Billboard albums chart and gave her the largest streaming week for a female artist’s album ever.
9
Scarlett Johansson Had To Back Out Of A Controversial Role
It’s not the first time Scarlett has faced controversy over taking a role that many found her unfit for. In 2017 Scarlett took on the role of a lead character in a live-action remake of a Japanese manga series. There were rumors that Paramount and Dreamworks contemplated using technology to make the actress look more Asian, which apparently seemed easier that casting an Asian actress. The movie did not do as well as expected and Scarlett just barely addressed the controversy. This year, Scarlett found herself in a familiar pickle when she was cast to play a transgender character in the upcoming film “Rub & Tug.” Initially, Scarlett addressed the controversy unapologetically and instead chose to highlight other cisgender actors that had previously played transgender characters, like Jared Leto. She eventually changed her tune when she realized she wouldn’t be able to get away with keeping the role this time around. Scarlett remains a successful Hollywood actress, but if she pulls a stunt like this again, we’d expect it to be her last chance.
8
Geoffrey Owens Had A Career Revival After Being Filmed At Trader Joe’s
Geoffrey Owens starred in The Cosby Show as Sondra Huxtable’s husband Elvin in the 80s and 90s. He fell off most people’s radar after that famed role and was spotted again this year while working at Trader Joe’s when a customer decided to record him. Celebrities are often shamed for taking on “regular people” jobs after being on the big screen, but Geoffrey was lucky enough to have a lot of big names rally around him. Soon after the incident, he was interviewed on a number of talk shows. He explained that he was still acting and teaching, but had to fill in the gaps (presumably, the loss of residuals from The Cosby Show also affected his income). Nicki Minaj generously donated $25,000 to the actor (who then donated it to the Actor’s Fund) and Tyler Perry gave him a job. He’s set to star in “The Haves and The Have Nots,” “NCIS: New Orleans,” and a new film starring Hillary Swank, USA Today reported.
7
“Jersey Shore” Star Mike Sorrentino Was Sentenced For Tax Fraud
Maybe he wasn’t the biggest star, but Jersey Shore’s “The Situation” could have had things go another way for him this year. He celebrated three years of sobriety this year and tied the knot with his longtime girlfriend. However, things kind of derailed when he was sentenced to eight months in prison for tax evasion. In reality, the sentence was a long time coming for Mike, who was indicted on tax offences in 2014, along with his brother. In 2017, more charges were added to the list. His brother was sentenced to two years in jail. The Situation is expected to begin his sentence in January 2019, People reports.
6
K-Pop Group BTS Was Tweeted About More Than Kayne West And Trump
If you’re not an “internet person,” you may have never heard of the K-pop band BTS, but rest assured they’re a pretty big deal. Gone are the days when BTS stood for behind the scenes, now it refers to the record-breaking boyband. On top of being this year’s most tweeted about celebrity for the second year in a row, the band also broke the record for most Youtube views in 24 hours with their “Idol” music video, after beating out Taylor Swift’s “Look What You Made Me Do.” This year BTS also became the first Korean artists to top the Billboard 200, showing that 2018 was a big year for the group internationally.
5
Kathy Griffin Sparked Outrage Over Her Political Commentary
Comedian Kathy Griffin is known for sparking controversy, and despite being among the long list of celebrities that have spoken out against Donald Trump, it seems many thought she took it too far. After posing with a mask depicting his severed head, Kathy was scolded by the man on Twitter. Kathy was fired from her New Year’s Eve co-hosting job at CNN and even became the focus of a Secret Service investigation, E News reports. The comedian has spent most of 2018 trying to come back from the scandal while dealing with death threats and the president’s scorn.
4
Sandra Oh Made History As An Emmy Nominee
After spending years playing the beloved character Christina Yang on Grey’s Anatomy and being arguably underappreciated, Sandra Oh left the show. She went on to star on the majorly successful BBC show Killing Eve, where she plays the title character Eve. For this role, she was nominated for an Emmy and became the first woman of Asian descent to be nominated for best lead actress in a drama series. Even though she didn’t win, the nomination has incredible historical significance, and will surely elevate her status as an actress. Additionally, it was only the show’s first season, so there is much time for her to be nominated again.
3
Keegan Michael Key And The Stars Of The Predator Film Came Under Fire
Olivia Munn followed up on her pledge to the MeToo movement this year by speaking up when she discovered that one of the film’s actors was a registered sex offender that plead guilty in a case involving an underage female relative. After alerting her male costars, Boyd Holbrook, Keegan Michael-Key, Augusto Aguilero, Jake Busey, and Trevante Rhodes, the actress found herself ostracized from the group. Only after the news came to light about the sex offender, and the fact that Olivia was being ignored by the rest of her costars, did they publicly speak up on the matter. The film fell short of its predecessor in earnings its first week, and while Olivia’s costars will certainly get second chances, this scandal will likely reemerge when more is tacked on to their lists.
2
Noah Centineo Became Everyone’s New Fave Heartthrob
After starring in “To All The Boys I’ve Loved and Sierra Burgess Is A Loser” for Netflix, Noah Centineo became many people’s internet boyfriend. Netflix seems to be single-handedly bringing back the rom-com genre, and it’s been a long time since US audiences have had a go-to male for this type of role. Noah previously starred on the Freeform drama The Fosters but this year marked his big debut. As admirers continue to muddle the line between the actor and his nice-guy roles, Noah’s star promises to rise, as long as he doesn’t disappoint.
1
Lena Dunham Continued To Tarnish Her Brand
Actress and Girls creator Lena Dunham was praised when she first rose to the scene, but since then she’s continued to be involved in a number of small, yet concerning scandals. This year she was forced to apologize for defending a former Girls writer against sexual assault allegations, shortly after declaring that women should be believed. In the past, she’s had to issue an apology to Odell Beckham Jr. after making a number of assumptions because he didn’t speak to her at an event (the two do not know each other). She was also involved in an odd situation where she claimed she had to give up her rescue dog because it was aggressive, but the shelter she adopted the dog from disputed her claims. This is just a glimpse into the number of situations Lena has had to explain/apologize for during her career, and every year people seem to be a little less willing to listen to her side of things.
References:
Time, Rolling Stone, Vanity Fair, Slate, People, Forbes, Billboard, Teen Vogue, E News, CNN, NY Times, CNBC
