00:00Your reaction to that verdict?
00:03Shock.
00:04Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most
00:08notable celebrities who once had it all, only to lose everything at the peak of their careers.
00:12I'm a competitor. It's what I've done my whole life.
00:16Number 10. The Chicks.
00:18Formed in 1989, The Chicks rose from obscurity to become one of the most popular bands in a decade.
00:23By the early 2000s, they dominated country music, becoming the best-selling all-female
00:32band in history and winning multiple Grammy Awards. However, after the tragic September
00:3711th attacks, lead vocalist Natalie Mains opposed George W. Bush's decision to invade Iraq.
00:42During a 2003 performance in London,
00:44Mains criticized Bush, a move that was deemed unpatriotic by the country music industry.
00:52Number 4.
01:00We're ashamed of the present United States of America.
01:05This backlash led to the group being blacklisted,
01:07resulting in a sharp decline in music sales and a loss of sponsorships.
01:11The Chicks eventually made a comeback with their Grammy-winning 2006 album,
01:14Taking the Long Way, though it failed to reach their former level of success.
01:23Number 9. Charlie Sheen.
01:26Throughout the 80s and 90s, Charlie Sheen established himself as a leading man on the
01:29big screen. But it was the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men that made Sheen a television powerhouse.
01:44By the eighth season, Sheen was earning a whopping $1.78 million per episode,
01:49making him the highest-paid actor on TV. Having attained such unprecedented heights,
01:54Sheen proved there was nowhere to go but down.
02:06The actor, who was grappling with substance use disorder at the time,
02:09publicly insulted creator Chuck Lorre during a radio show appearance.
02:13This ultimately led to him being fired and replaced with Ashton Kutcher.
02:21Sheen may no longer be the bankable star he once was,
02:24but at least he appears to have achieved sobriety.
02:27Number 8. Millie Vanillie.
02:28Many aspiring singers dream of winning the Grammy Award for Best New Artist.
02:32For Millie Vanillie, the R&B duo from Munich, that dream became a reality in 1990.
02:43The duo had seen an unprecedented rise to fame in the late 80s,
02:48fueled by their album Girl You Know It's True. This album not only won them the Grammy,
02:53it also produced three consecutive No. 1 singles, a remarkable feat for a new act.
03:02However, their rapid success was short-lived. It was soon revealed that the duo didn't sing
03:06any of the songs on the album and only lip-sync during live performances. Just like that,
03:11their Grammy was revoked, their recording contract terminated, and their legacy forever tarnished.
03:18Number 7. Paula Deen.
03:20With multiple TV shows, a string of successful cookbooks, and her own restaurant chain,
03:24Paula Deen was at the pinnacle of her culinary career.
03:41However, her reputation took a severe hit when a former employee sued her for racial
03:50and sexual discrimination. When she was deposed, Deen admitted to using racial slurs in the past.
03:55Although the lawsuit was eventually dropped, the transcript of the deposition leaked,
03:59resulting in a massive public backlash.
04:01Context is never an excuse for using derogatory
04:04statements towards any group or race of people.
04:07Deen tried to quell the flames by releasing a series of bizarre apology videos online
04:11and appearing on The Today Show to apologize further, but none of these attempts seemed to work.
04:16It's important to me that I tell you and everyone out there what I believe and how I live my life.
04:25Consequently, the Food Network terminated her contract,
04:28and she lost several other endorsement deals.
04:30Number 6. Jussie Smollett.
04:32The Fox musical drama series Empire became a huge hit in the mid-2010s,
04:36propelling its lesser-known actors to global fame.
04:46Among them was Jussie Smollett, who portrayed middle son Jamal Lyon.
04:50This role seemed like the ideal launching pad for a successful Hollywood career,
04:53but Smollett confounded everyone when he fabricated a fake hate crime against himself in 2019.
05:05He then paid two brothers who had appeared as extras on Empire to go along with his
05:09elaborate hoax by posing as his attackers.
05:11Once this revelation came to light,
05:13Smollett was fired from the show and his character was written off.
05:16We're also told there are deep divisions among the cast over whether to continue to support him.
05:20He was subsequently convicted of felony disorderly conduct for lying to the police
05:24and sentenced to 150 days in jail.
05:26You do such a disservice when you lie about things like this.
05:29Number 5. Roseanne Barr.
05:31Following the original run of her eponymous sitcom,
05:34Roseanne Barr tried her hand at various other comedy series and reality shows,
05:37but none were nearly as successful.
05:39In 2018, her show was brought back for a 10th season revival,
05:43which became a huge ratings hit and brought Barr renewed acclaim.
05:46First let's say grace. Jackie, would you like to take a knee?
05:50The comedian seemed poised for a late career resurgence,
05:53but she sabotaged all of that with her own hands.
05:55Roseanne Barr has been very controversial over the years,
05:59but people managed to look past that to a certain degree until now.
06:03After posting a racially insensitive tweet aimed at former White House advisor Valerie Jarrett,
06:07Barr was heavily criticized by fans and her industry peers.
06:11She was fired by ABC, and Roseanne was cancelled that same day.
06:14The show was eventually retooled as The Conners,
06:16and Barr subsequently faded back into obscurity.
06:19We could not have held this all together without you.
06:21Well, that's why I'm here. I know Roseanne would want me to step in and watch over the family.
06:25No, it'd kill her.
06:28But she's already dead, so carry on.
06:31Number 4. Jonathan Majors.
06:33After graduating from Yale in 2016,
06:35Jonathan Majors quickly rose to fame with roles in The Last Black Man in San Francisco
06:39and the HBO series Lovecraft Country.
06:50In 2023, Majors debuted as Kang the Conqueror in the Marvel Cinematic Universe,
06:54a role that was considered transformative for his career.
07:05However, his portrayal of the villain was cut short in March
07:08when he was arrested for assault and aggravated harassment of his ex-girlfriend.
07:12Over the weekend, actor Jonathan Majors was charged with assault
07:15after a 30-year-old woman told cops he attacked her.
07:18The following month, more women accused Majors of assault,
07:21leading to his management and PR firm dropping him,
07:23and Disney removing his upcoming film, Magazine Dreams, from its release schedule.
07:27Majors was ultimately convicted of misdemeanor assault and harassment charges,
07:31following which he was fired by Marvel Studios.
07:33You know, everything is... everything's kind of gone away.
07:38Throughout the 2010s, Armie Hammer was on a steady rise in Hollywood,
07:43starring in major projects such as The Lone Ranger and The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
07:55His most celebrated role came with 2017's Call Me By Your Name,
07:58which brought him international fame.
08:08However, in January 2021, all of that public favor dissipated
08:12when the actor's text messages were leaked,
08:14showcasing his violent fantasies against various women.
08:17Hammer initially denied the messages were his,
08:19but multiple women came forward with corroborating claims.
08:22If you look for something, you're gonna find something that you're not gonna like, always.
08:26As a result, Hammer either pulled out or was dropped from several upcoming projects.
08:31He subsequently moved to the Cayman Islands,
08:33where he reportedly was arrested for assaulting his ex-girlfriend.
08:36Prior to the controversy that derailed his career,
08:39Kevin Spacey was a highly respected actor with two Academy Awards to his name.
08:48In the early 2010s, he transitioned smoothly to TV,
08:52producing and starring in the highly acclaimed political series House of Cards.
09:06In 2017, after the fifth season premiered,
09:13Spacey was accused of sexual assault by actor Anthony Rapp in an incident from 1986.
09:18This prompted more individuals to come forward with their own
09:20allegations of sexual assault and harassment.
09:26Spacey's career quickly collapsed.
09:28His contract with Netflix was terminated, and he was dropped from his future projects.
09:32Although he has been cleared of legal charges in these cases,
09:34Spacey's public reputation appears to be permanently damaged.
09:371. Lance Armstrong
10:06In one year, Lance Armstrong went from being one of the most celebrated athletes
10:10to an international pariah.
10:19How did he manage that? Well, Armstrong had brought global attention to cycling
10:22by winning seven consecutive Tour de France titles. Even more impressive,
10:26he achieved that remarkable feat after beating testicular cancer just a few years prior.
10:30Despite this acclaim, Armstrong was dodged by allegations of doping for years,
10:34which he consistently denied. Those allegations made headlines in 2012,
10:37when an investigation by the United States Anti-Doping Agency
10:41found that he not only used enhancement drugs, but also ran a doping ring.
10:50He was stripped of his record-setting titles and received a lifetime ban from the sport.
11:04Are any of these celebrities worthy of a second chance in the spotlight?
11:11Let us know in the comments below.
11:34And don't forget to subscribe to our channel for more videos like this!
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