Urban Myth or Real-Life Tiff: How Did These Famous Feuds Really Start?

Does anyone really know why Shia LaBeouf had a problem with Frankie Muniz?

By Samantha Schnurr Jan 17, 2017 8:35 PMTags
Canceled Reality Shows, The Simple lifeSam Jones/20th Century Fox Tv/Kobal/Shutterstock

There's two sides to every story, but when it comes to celebrity feuds, even both sides can get a bit foggy. 

In Tinseltown, spats are as frequent as Instagram selfies and organic smoothies, but as time passes and relationships get more convoluted, it's difficult to keep track of how many of those rifts actually began. Did they stem from deep-rooted issues or were they sparked by one careless comment? Have those involved made amends or do they even remember why they're fighting in the first place? 

As fans seek to make sense of Hollywood's tangled personal web, we're doing a deep dive into some of those famous feuds to find their origin—if they even have one, that is. 

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Famous Feuds: TV Shows vs. Stars
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Aaron Rodgers vs. His Family

To Hollywood, Aaron Rodgers is Olivia Munn's NFL pro beau, but at home, he's an estranged son. The athlete's personal problems with his younger brother, The Bachelorette's Jordan Rodgers, and parents did not come to light until Jordan made his debut on reality television, but the terms of their conflict have been entirely hush-hush. In fact, practically everyone involved has all but refused to reveal the reason for their family drama. 

"I just don't think it's appropriate talking about family stuff publicly," Aaron recently said of their ordeal during a press conference. As for his father, Ed, all he was willing to say during an interview with The New York Times is that "it's complicated," but, "we're all hoping for the best." 

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Nicole Richie vs. Paris Hilton

They were the best friends reality television ever had, but the Simple Life stars were not always two peas in a rural pod. In fact, at the height of the hit Fox series' fame, the childhood besties were suddenly at war.

"It's no big secret that Nicole and I are no longer friends," Hilton said in a 2005 statement, according to a report by People at the time. "Nicole knows what she did, and that's all I'm ever going to say about it."

While Richie might have known, fans didn't. Though jealousy was the speculated reason for their rift—particularly as Hilton became closer friends with Kimberly Stewart—no clear cause was ever given for their brief spat. They did eventually reconcile and film two more seasons of the show together. Though Hilton did not attend Richie's 2010 wedding to Joel Madden (she was doing a pre-planned shoot for a reality show at the time), almost a decade later, Richie still considers them to be "very good friends."

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"Paris is somebody that's been in my life since day one. I haven't spoken to her in a while technically, but if you really want to get into it, my view of a friendship is somebody that you don't necessarily have to talk to every day, somebody that you can call when you need them and they're just going to be there. Time of whether I've spoken to somebody is really...it doesn't really matter, in my opinion. An idea of a true friend is somebody that's going to be there with you through and through," Richie told Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live.

"The short answer is I haven't spoken to her in awhile, but we are very good friends and I love her and love her family and have a lot of respect for her."

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Frankie Muniz vs. Shia LaBeouf

In a strange war of the words between the 2000s child stars, the Even Stevens actor took a verbal shot at the Malcom in the Middle lead, though fans are still not sure why. The spat was first noticeable during a 2003 Entertainment Weekly interview with LaBeouf at a time when Hollywood was posturing to make the teenager the "next Frankie Muniz."

"I used to see [Muniz] at premieres and stuff and it would always be like he was looking down on me," LaBeouf told the magazine. "And then it turned into we're equal, and then it turned into 'Oh Frankie? I know that guy."'

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Seven years later and without further explanation, LaBeouf reignited the drama during an interview on The Bert Show, during which the hosts congratulated him for a string of box office successes. "While that's flattering as hell, you could have put Frankie Muniz into any of the movies I've been in and those movies still would've still been No. 1," he replied, adding that he wasn't worried about running into his foe at an upcoming party. "I don't go to many parties…and I really don't hang out in Frankie Muniz-type zones."

Muniz finally got a word in, tweeting, "Dear Shia LaBeouf, It's getting creepy the fact that you can't stop talking about me. It's been 12 years now. I don't know you. Thanks." So far, that's been the end of that, though we would love to know the reason for the ill will in the first place. 

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Betty White vs. Bea Arthur 

It's hard to imagine anyone not getting along with the 95-year-old queen of comedy, but it turns out the Golden Girl didn't have a fan in her co-star. As for the reason, it all boils down to Arthur simply not liking her. 

"Bea was not that fond of me," White said during an interview on The Joy Behar Show in 2011. "I don't know what I ever did but she was not that thrilled with me. But I loved Bea and I admired her."

From Arthur's point of view, she and White had different origins in Hollywood—and that would cause them to butt heads.

"When they shot the sitcom, sometimes they had to stop. My mom would stay concentrated, maybe stay backstage, stand in her place there. And sometimes Betty would go out and smile and chat with the audience and literally go and make friends with the audience. Which is a nice thing — a lot of them have come from all over the country and are fans," Arthur's son told The Hollywood Reporter

"I think my mom didn't dig that. It's more about being focused or conserving your energy. It's just not the right time to talk to fans between takes. Betty was able to do it and it didn't seem to affect her. But it rubbed my mom the wrong way."