40 Times Stars Shut Down Interviewers With Their Hilariously Blunt Responses

Thanks to the likes of Parks and Recreation, Baby Mama, and Sisters, Amy Poehler has earned a reputation as one of the most hilarious comedic actresses around. Little wonder, then, that she dismissed a query at an Emmy Awards roundtable about the belief that men are funnier than women. Poehler let out an “Ugh” before adding, “This question is boring.”

“Are you the fat guy in Hollywood still?” You can’t blame Jonah Hill for getting a little defensive about the very rude question he was asked during a Georgia Tech chat promoting Allen Gregory in 2011. In response to the tactless interviewer, the animated sitcom’s star fired back, “Do you have any other questions that are smart?”

In 2017 Matt Damon headed out on the Save Our Schools march with his mom in the U.S. capital. Perhaps not the most appropriate time to question the teaching profession, then. But that’s what one camera operator did when he asked The Martian star, “Aren’t ten percent of teachers bad, though?” Damon retaliated, “Maybe you’re a [bad] cameraman.” Although, obviously, he said something much harsher than “bad.”

Scarlett Johansson appeared to point out the sexism on the press junket circuit in 2012 when she was asked about her diet. The actress subsequently turned to her The Avengers co-star Robert Downey Jr. to pose the rhetorical query, “How come you get the really interesting existential question, and I get the rabbit food question?” To her credit, Johansson did end up giving a brief answer before trying to move the conversation on.

You can always rely on Jim Carrey to do things a little differently. In 2017 the Ace Ventura star rocked up to New York City’s Fashion Week where a reporter from TV show E! News asked him exactly what he was doing there. The rubber-faced actor replied, “There’s no meaning to any of this. I wanted to find the most meaningless thing that I could come to and join.”

“What are you wearing?” is always the most popular question when it comes to the red carpet of the Academy Awards. But Jennifer Lawrence had no time to talk about fashion when CNN asked about her Oscars outfit of choice in 2013. The Hunger Games star replied, “What do you mean? Like, this is the top, and this is the bottom.”

This was undoubtedly one of the more memorable chat show interviews of recent years. In 2019 Ellen put guest Dakota Johnson on the spot after asking why she hadn’t received an invitation to her last two birthday parties. The Fifty Shades of Grey star soon silenced the host when she replied that invites had been sent out but that Ellen simply hadn’t shown up.

You have to admire Harrison Ford for simply telling it like it is. During a 2015 Reddit AMA, the Star Wars actor was asked by an enthusiastic fan whether Greedo or Han Solo shot first in the now-legendary Mos Eisley Cantina scene. The man who played the latter didn’t even try hiding his apathy, replying, “I don’t know, and I don’t care.”

Joan Rivers sure enjoyed dishing out the style critiques as the host of Fashion Police. But in 2014 the funnywoman proved that she didn’t like receiving them. During a promotional chat on CNN for her memoir Diary of A Mad Diva, Rivers was asked why she was sporting a fur coat on its cover. The comedienne turned the tables on host Fredricka Whitfield, enquiring, “Are you wearing leather shoes? Then shut up.”

In 2015 Natasha Lyonne hit the promo circuit for the latest season of Orange Is the New Black. And she didn’t take kindly to being asked whether the Netflix hit’s “beautiful” cast could keep a lid on the spitefulness and back-biting. The actress replied, “Despite the great beauty on the show, everybody is professional and talented and very capable. So, I don’t think anybody is thinking of something as meaningless as their beauty when they’re at work, certainly not for this show.”

Russell Brand just wasn’t having any of it when the hosts of MSNBC’s Morning Joe started to poke fun at his British accent. The wild-haired comedian accused the team of “casual objectification” during his 2013 appearance before asking, “Is this what you all do for a living?” And Brand became even more irate as the presenters continued to talk about him as though he wasn’t in the room.

Quentin Tarantino was in no mood to accept any connections between the violence in his movies and in real life when asked by TV news anchor Krishnan Guru-Murthy in 2013. The Django Unchained director told the Channel 4 host, “I refuse your question. I’m not your slave and you’re not my master. You can’t make me dance to your tune... I’m saying I refuse.”

KTLA’s TV news anchor Sam Rubin no doubt wanted the ground to swallow him up in 2014 when he mistook guest Samuel L. Jackson for another actor. The host asked the Pulp Fiction star about his appearance in a Super Bowl ad before being put straight that he was thinking of Laurence Fishburne. Jackson said, “We may all be black and famous, but we don’t all look alike! You’re busted.”

Rihanna certainly put one British TV news interviewer in her place when she was asked about the state of her private life during a press conference to promote the movie Battleship. After attempting to butter up the multi-talented star, the ITN reporter then snuck in a query about the rumors linking her with Ashton Kutcher. Rihanna replied, “How disappointing was that question?”

During a 2015 interview at radio station Power 106, Ariana Grande was asked by hosts Eric D-Luz and Justin Credible whether she valued her phone or makeup more. The “7 Rings” singer sure wasn’t impressed with this line of questioning. She responded, “Is this what you think girls have trouble choosing between? Is this men assuming that that’s what girls would have to choose between?”

Props to Lauren Conrad for thinking on her feet during a chat with SiriusXM in 2012. After drawing the question out from a mystery bag, The Hills star was forced to answer, “What’s your favorite position?” But swerving the obviously intended sexual preference topic, Conrad responded, “CEO.” Even the host applauded the reality star for her quick wit.

After winning a Hollywood Film Award for her role in The Imitation Game, Keira Knightley was asked how she managed to balance a successful career with a private life. It’s fair to say that the actress didn’t appreciate having to deal with such a question. She fired back, “Are you going to ask all the men that tonight too?”

As the frontman of gloomy goth rockers The Cure, Robert Smith isn’t exactly renowned for his peppy disposition. The interviewer who bounced up to him on the red carpet of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2019 didn’t seem to be aware of this, though. When asked by an enthusiastic Carrie Keagan, “Are you as excited as I am?,” a deadpan Smith simply replied, “Umm, by the sounds of it, no.”

Seems like you want Mila Kunis fighting your corner if your acting credibility is ever called into question. While promoting romantic comedy Friends with Benefits in 2011, pop idol Justin Timberlake was asked why he’d decided to venture into the film world. His co-star fired back, “Well, what would you rather have him do?”

While hitting the promo circuit for Legend in 2015 Tom Hardy was rudely asked about his sexuality by a nosy reporter. As you’d expect, the actor didn’t think much of this line of questioning, answering, “What on earth are you talking about?” After the same man added that he wanted to know about his past, Hardy responded matter-of-factly, “Why?”

Daniel Radcliffe’s attempts to distance himself from his boyish wizard past didn’t convince everyone. In 2014 a reporter for news agency the Associated Press asked the Harry Potter star about being a romantic lead of the unconventional kind. An irritated Radcliffe fired back, “What about me is unconventional, exactly?... The male population has had no problem [sensualizing] Emma Watson immediately.”

Alan Rickman famously played Hogwarts professor Severus Snape in the Harry Potter franchise. But that didn’t stop an interviewer on BBC show HARDtalk from asking the esteemed actor whether the movies were “worth the hype.” Rickman coolly replied, “Well, it’s worth any amount of hype to get children to read again.”

In 2015 Nancy O’Dell appeared to incur the wrath of Taylor Swift with a red carpet compliment about her appearance that slightly backfired. Ahead of the Grammy Awards ceremony, the Entertainment Tonight host told the multiple nominee, “I think you’re going to walk home with more than just a trophy tonight. I think lots of men.” A piqued Swift made it clear that wasn’t going to be the case, answering, “I’m not going to walk home with any men tonight.”

Even the big guns can get it hopelessly wrong sometimes when it comes to interviewing celebs. In 2007 Larry King offended Jerry Seinfeld when he suggested that the star’s eponymous sitcom had been taken off-air by NBC. The comedian, who’d actually decided to bring the show to a close himself, fired back, “You think I got canceled? Is this still CNN? Do you know who I am? Geez, can we get my resume in here?”

Long before Blue Ivy and twins Rumi and Sir came along, Beyoncé was asked by a nosy interviewer whether her partner was interested in having children. And you could say that the former Destiny’s Child singer didn’t appreciate this intrusive questioning. A clearly annoyed Queen Bey fired back, “Are you serious?”

Justin Bieber’s friendship with Harry Styles, a man renowned for his love of the older lady, proved to be no laughing matter in 2012. While appearing on a Detroit radio show, the pop idol was asked whether he worried about the One Direction star being around his mother. Bieber chose not to answer before snapping back, “I think you should worry about your mom, though.”

Mayim Bialik had the perfect response when her intelligence was questioned on the red carpet of the 2013 SAG Awards. The Big Bang Theory actress was asked how many people genuinely believed that she could immediately solve complex math questions in the same manner as her sitcom character. Bialik answered, “Ummm. I was actually trained in calculus. For several years. I’m a neuroscientist.”

Here’s a tip for any TV reporters interviewing Christoph Waltz: don’t question his career choices. In 2015 Good Morning Britain’s Charlotte Hawkins asked the Spectre star whether he’d had doubts about taking on a role in a James Bond film considering his Academy Awards credentials. Waltz sarcastically responded “Even when I came in here, I thought, ‘Hang on, do I need to do that? I am a double Oscar-winner!’”

Celebs having to deal with inappropriate questions certainly isn’t just a modern thing. During a 1975 appearance on British TV chat show Parkinson, Helen Mirren was asked whether her acting career had been hindered by her figure. The actress fired back, “Because serious actresses can’t have big bosoms, is that what you mean?”

“You should smile more” is one of those remarks bound to get anyone wound up. But Simone Biles soon put Tom Bergeron in his place when he made a similar comment on Dancing with the Stars in 2017. Following a well-received performance, the host turned to the Olympian and said, “I was waiting for you to smile at some of the compliments. You didn’t.” The gymnast replied, “Smiling doesn’t win you gold medals.”

Lady Gaga has never been afraid to speak her mind. And she understandably took offense in 2009 when asked whether her provocative nature detracted from her music. The “Poker Face” singer retorted, “Not at all. I’ve got three number-one records and I’ve sold almost four million albums worldwide.” Gaga then commented on her love for the gay community for not posing such questions.

Harry Belafonte had been hitting the promotional trail hard for his autobiography My Song in 2011. And at the age of 84, the legendary singer sure had earned a little nap. Unfortunately for KBAK’s Layla Santiago, Belafonte decided to get in a quick 40 winks just as he was about to be interviewed live on air. The anchor joked, “This is your wake-up call! Okay, I’ll tell you what, he's meditating.”

In 2011 Charlie Sheen served up one of the most memorable interviews of the decade when he spoke to ABC News shortly after attending rehab. The Two and a Half Men star gave several quotable answers during the chat, claiming that the only drug now entering his body was “called Charlie Sheen.” The actor also shut down rumors about his mental health, insisting, “I’m not bipolar, I’m bi-winning.”

Dua Lipa showed that she might be better off sticking to the singing when she filled in for Jimmy Fallon on his late-night chat show in 2020. During an interview with Gwen Stefani, the “New Rules” hitmaker inadvertently married her guest off. Lipa awkwardly referred to the No Doubt star’s boyfriend Blake Shelton as her spouse. But Stefani soon put her straight, answering, “Well, he’s not my husband. But that sounded cool when you said that.”

One highly embarrassed entertainment reporter couldn’t apologize enough after appearing to offend Anne Hathaway during a press junket. The red-faced interviewer had asked the Oscar winner about losing weight in preparation to play Catwoman in The Dark Knight Rises. In response, a visibly shocked Hathaway immediately described him as a “forward young man.”

Amy Schumer couldn’t hide her contempt at the question she was asked while promoting Trainwreck on an Aussie radio station. KIIS FM’s Matt Tilley had described her film’s character as a skank during the frosty interview before insisting that he wasn’t trying to offend. Schumer responded, “Whatever you are trying to do, you are.” The comedienne also looked visibly irate in a publicity photo taken shortly after the chat.

Danielle Demski of TNT made an embarrassing faux pas while complimenting Rashida Jones on the SAG Awards red carpet in 2015. “You look like you’ve just come off an island or something, you’re very tan, very tropical,” she told the Parks and Recreation star. Jones wryly responded, “I mean, you know, I’m ethnic.”

We can’t quite work out whether Jesse Eisenberg and Romina Puga were flirting or feuding during their chat together in 2013. In the heavily-edited clip for web series Say My Name, the Now You See Me actor seems both amused and irritated by the host’s list of demands. He later refers to Puga as the “Carrot Top of interviewers.”

You wouldn’t expect even one interviewer to have the gall to ask Scarlett Johansson about her underwear options during the filming of The Avengers. But during a 2012 press junket, nearly half a dozen reporters did. By the time the fifth question came in, Johansson had simply had enough. She demanded, “What is going on? Since when did people start asking each other in interviews about their underwear?”

Meg Ryan described legendary British TV interviewer Michael Parkinson as a “disapproving dad” after an infamous 2003 appearance on his chat show. Promoting her adult thriller In the Cut, the actress became increasingly uncomfortable with the constant questions about her playing against type. After Parkinson asked Ryan what she would do in his position, the Hollywood star replied, “Why not wrap it up?”