From minor gaffes to massive missteps, it’s been a colourful year in pop culture, to say the absolute least.
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For the likes of Britney Spears and Beyonce, inking a Pepsi endorsement deal represented a marker of star status. For Kendall Jenner, it only spelled trouble. When the brand’s Jenner-fronted “Live For Now” campaign was released in April, it was met with instant backlash for seemingly co-opting protest culture. Rather than getting behind any particular cause, the soda company was accused of watering down movements like #BlackLivesMatter and positioning itself as the answer to the conflict. Pepsi quickly pulled the ad and issued an apology, while Jenner opted to address the criticism on an episode of “Keeping Up With The Kardashians” – six months later.
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Filming on the fourth season of the popular “Bachelor” spin-off halted after a producer voiced concern over a sexual encounter between Corinne Olympios and DeMario Jackson. Though an internal investigation eventually found no evidence of misconduct and production resumed, albeit without Olympios and Jackson, the scandal erupted into a “He Said/She Said” war of words in the press, with several cast members taking sides.
When Jackson sat down with ET Canada in August, the reality star admitted he “one hundred percent” thought race played a factor in the media coverage, and called the day the scandal broke “probably the worst day of my entire life.” It’s safe to say this wasn’t the journey anyone signed up for.
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Kim Kardashian is no stranger to controversy, and the reality star caused quite a stir when a series of photos for her KKW beauty line portrayed her in what some deemed to be blackface. Kim later addressed the controversy on “Keeping Up With The Kardashians”: “I get it, I was super tanned, the lighting was really moody so I get why people might say that, but I don't want to give people the reason to say anything negative,” she said. “I would never disrespect anyone.”
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In perhaps one of the biggest scandals to ever hit Hollywood, a series of sexual assault allegations against film mogul Harvey Weinstein opened the floodgates for dozens of women (and some men) to come forward and name their abusers. Dozens of stars including Rose McGowan, Gwyneth Paltrow, Terry Crews and Alyssa Milano have come forward as victims of sexual harassment and/or assault, resulting in the powerful #MeToo social media campaign. By the same token, power players like Russell Simmons, Matt Lauer and Louis C.K. have been disgraced by sexual harassment and/or assault allegations against them.
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Yes, the “House Of Cards” star falls under the sexual assault umbrella as well, with a series of allegations laid against him stemming from incidents as far back as the 1980s. However, his response to his own scandal drew particular ire; the Oscar winner tweeted an apology to his alleger, actor Anthony Rapp, accompanied by a declaration that he’s gay. Many, particularly in the LGBTQ community, expressed their horror at Spacey’s timing and choice of words.
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Also stemming from the sex assault mega-scandal, Time Magazine declared “the silence breakers” as their collective Person Of The Year. However, there was a sizeable backlash to the inclusion of Taylor Swift among the women on the cover. The singer’s involvement stems from her successful sexual assault trial against a radio DJ, but some criticized her silence towards sexual assault at large – and towards several other social justice issues. Still, others noted her significant star status, and the attention that her presence on the cover could draw to the issue.
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Another day, another Kardashian drama, right? In June, the Jenner sisters launched a line of vintage t-shirts featuring music icons like The Notorious B.I.G. and Ozzy Osbourne… with the reality stars’ faces superimposed on top. The line was deemed exploitative by all sides: the public, the relatives of the musicians in question (and in some cases, the musicians themselves), and the photographers of the images they used. Michael Miller, who owns a photo of rapper 2pac which the sisters used, even took his claim to court.
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If you ask us, last year’s Academy Awards had more drama than the films they were honouring. After Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty declared “La La Land” the year’s Best Picture, the musical’s assembled cast and crew were informed that the card had been misread - the winner was actually “Moonlight”.
So who was to blame for the incident? Some pointed the finger at Dunaway and Beatty, though it was later revealed that PwC accountant Brian Cullinan handed them the wrong envelope backstage. As a result, the Academy announced that Cullinan and his colleague, Martha Ruiz, would no longer tabulate Oscar votes.
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After exiting the Trump administration amid a myriad of controversy, the former White House press secretary joined Emmys host Stephen Colbert during the live telecast to poke fun at his tenure in Washington. Specifically, Spicey played off his false claim that Donald Trump’s swearing in had “the largest audience to ever witness an inauguration, period.” While the bit was intended in good humour, critics were quick to accuse the Emmys of co-signing Spicer’s peddling of misinformation during his brief time in the White House.
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Perhaps more than any film released this year, Darren Aronofsky’s passion project divided critics right down the middle. Starring Aronofsky’s then-girlfriend, Jennifer Lawrence, the psychological horror flick underperformed, grossing a meagre $44 million worldwide against a $30 million budget. The press tour for the film also drove a wedge between Lawrence and Aronofsky, who began dating shortly after “Mother!” finished production; in an interview with Adam Sandler, the actress labelled Aronofsky’s obsession with the film’s negative reviews “not healthy.” She said, “I was doing double duty trying to be a supportive partner while also being like, ‘Can I please, for the love of God, not think about ‘Mother!’ for one second?’” The pair split in November.
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Global TV’s hit comedy served as a “King Of Queens” reunion when Leah Remini guest-starred opposite Kevin James for the final two episodes of season one. The reunion was extended in June when CBS announced that Remini would become a series regular during season 2, but the network dismissed actress Erinn Hayes, who played James’ on-screen wife, shortly thereafter. Some fans expressed their disappointment on Twitter, with some even calling for a boycott of the show. Remini took to Twitter herself to respond to some of the criticism, calling Hayes “lovely and funny” while noting, “it’s a sitcom & it isn’t that deep.”