Many in the entertainment world are dropping the platform
The relationship between the paparazzi and the royal family has always been a difficult one. Though the defining moment where things really went south can be traced back to 1997, when Princess Diana lost her life in a car crash in Paris. Lady Di was being pursued by paps when it happened.
In 2017, a French court ordered the magazine to pay €100,000 in damages, while the magazine's editor and owner had to each pay an additional €45,000 euros in fines.
"My wife and I thought that we could go to France for a few days in a secluded villa owned by a member of my family, and thus enjoy our privacy. We know France and the French and we know that they are, in principle, respectful of private life, including that of their guests. The clandestine way in which these photographs were taken was particularly shocking to us as it breached our privacy," said Prince William in a statement.
In 2013, the singer won a court case against the paparazzi, who were constantly around his home and following him everywhere. The judge ruled that paps must not be within 50 meters (164 feet) of Styles' home.
The actor recently lost his cool at the 2022 Oscars, but this was not the first time he slapped someone in public. In 2012, Ukrainian TV reporter Vitalii Sediuk hugged Smith during the ‘Men in Black 3’ premiere, but then crossed the line and tried to kiss him. Smith wasn’t happy about it and slapped him lightly. Many other celebs have been targeted by the prankster reporter over the years.
See also: The funniest ways celebs have tried to fool paparazzi
Prince William and Catherine, Princess of Wales had their privacy invaded by paparazzi who snapped pictures of her topless in France, where the couple were on vacation in 2012. The photos were first published in Closer magazine.
In 2014, Adele’s son, Angelo Adkins, had a suit filed in his name against a photography agency who took pictures of him. The settlement amounted to a five-figure sum in damages.
Ron Galella (pictured, background) broke the restraining order at least four times. Often called the “Godfather of the US paparazzi culture” and “Paparazzo Extraordinaire,” Galella passed away in 2022.
George Clooney issued the following statement: "Over the last week photographers from Voici magazine scaled our fence, climbed our tree and illegally took pictures of our infants inside our home. Make no mistake the photographers, the agency and the magazine will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. The safety of our children demands it."
In 2017, the paps went to great lengths to take photos of the couple’s newborns. So much so that they climbed on trees and over Clooney's home fence to snap pictures of the twins.
Back in the 1970s, a photographer named Ron Galella snapped several pictures of the former First Lady. According to Jacqueline Kennedy, he made her life “intolerable, almost unlivable, with his constant surveillance.” To the point that she had to get a restraining order against him.
In 2013, the rapper was inside his garage at 4 am, when he was approached by paparazzi. "Y'all out here trying to make money off us. That's how it's going. It's 4 am. It's 4 am and you ask me how it's going. You know I don't want you to say nothing to me," West told them.
In 2005, the actress was celebrating her daughter’s birthday at Disney California Adventure Park when she was approached by a paparazzo named Todd Wallace. The photographer shoved his way through a crowd of employees, Witherspoon’s friends, and children, hitting a young boy across the face with his camera. The pap was arrested on six charges of battery.
In 2005, the actress had a paparazzo named Galo Cesar Ramirez crashing his car into hers on purpose, just to snap a photo. All this after the paparazzo had chased Lohan, who in the meantime alerted the police that she was being chased. The man was arrested, but later released on a US$35,000 bail.
Schwarzenegger had just undergone open-heart surgery a week before the incident, and his wife was pregnant at the time. The judge found the two men had “crossed the legal line” and were convicted on two counts of misdemeanor false imprisonment.
The photographer was arrested following the hit-and-run incident and was charged with criminal harassment and assault with a weapon. The charges were later withdrawn. Fedyck was, however, banned from taking photos of Reynolds or his family.
In 1997, two cars with paparazzi boxed Arnie’s car, not allowing it to move. They proceeded to take pictures of him and his wife, Maria Shriver. The situation was extremely stressful, as the actor thought they were being kidnapped.
Just a few weeks prior, the actor's family had announced that Bruce Willis’ aphasia diagnosis had progressed to frontotemporal dementia.
“Just keep your space,” she asked in the video. “For the video people, please don’t be yelling at my husband asking him how he’s doing or whatever — the ‘woohoo’-ing and the ‘yippee ki-yays’… just don’t do it. OK? Give him his space. Allow for our family or whoever’s with him that day to be able to get him from point A to point B safely,” added Emma Heming Willis.
In 1999, a paparazzo managed to invade Jennifer Aniston’s neighbor’s yard and snap pictures of the actress, who was sunbathing topless in her own backyard. The actress sued the pap for the invasion of privacy, who had to pay just over half a million dollars to settle the lawsuit.
In 1986, Sean Penn was returning to his hotel room in Macau when the actor and his assistant had a man lunging at them. Penn suspected the man was a burglar, so he decided to dangle the pap over his room’s balcony on the ninth floor.
In 2013, a paparazzo named Chris Guerra actually died on the job while trying to snap a photo of what he thought was Justin Bieber’s car.
Bruce Willis’ wife, Emma Heming Willis, took to Instagram to appeal to the paparazzi not to yell at her husband on the street. The public appeal came after an incident where paps tried to talk to the ‘Die Hard’ actor when he was meeting friends for coffee in Santa Monica.
Paparazzi don’t just go after adults–the children of celebs are also targets. In 2013, the daughter of Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes experienced this, when a pap rudely yelled at her "Bye, Suri, you little brat!" Suri Cruise was seven at the time.
In 2015 while shooting the movie ‘Deadpool’ in Vancouver, the actor was stalked by a paparazzo named Richard Fedyck. At one point the two ended up arguing in a parking lot, and Fedyck hit Reynolds with his car. The actor suffered minor injuries.
Guerra died in a hit-and-run incident, and it turns out he risked his life in vain, as the white Ferrari didn’t belong to the Canadian singer. Pictured: the actual car owned by Justin Bieber.
In 2014, the pop star managed to win an extension on his court order against four photographers for harassment in the UK. In the same year, he actually rescued a fan who fell while he was being swarmed by paparazzi.
In 2011, the actress crashed her car into her kids’ Los Angeles school. Spelling said she was being chased by a photographer. "Paparazzi chased me w/the kids 2school. I was trying to get away from him and had a pretty big accident. Took down whole wall of school," she wrote.
The actor was arrested for attempted murder, but managed to break out of jail! Sean Penn received a pardon letter from the government a year later.
In 2013, Nicole Kidman was entering a hotel in New York when a paparazzo named Carl Wu hit the actress with his bike. The incident happened after Wu's brakes failed following his pursuit of Kidman’s car. The actress was knocked to the ground.
The paparazzi have been around for quite a long time, and while it can be said that they are just trying to make a living and do their job, sometimes they cross the line. Celebrities have tried everything to avoid them, and some have even assaulted a few. The truth is that there have been several occasions where paps have indeed gone too far, and many of them paid for it legally.
In this gallery, we remember some of the most significant times the paparazzi crossed the line. Click on to learn all about them.
Infamous instances of when the paparazzi crossed the line
When the paps go too far
CELEBRITY Dark side of fame
The paparazzi have been around for quite a long time, and while it can be said that they are just trying to make a living and do their job, sometimes they cross the line. Celebrities have tried everything to avoid them, and some have even assaulted a few. The truth is that there have been several occasions where paps have indeed gone too far, and many of them paid for it legally.
In this gallery, we remember some of the most significant times the paparazzi crossed the line. Click on to learn all about them.