Nobody is perfect, including your favorite celebs. The amount of actresses, singers, and reality stars who have experienced a fall from grace at some time in their careers is mind-boggling. There are certain sins that are simply too horrific to forgive for a celebrity, but for these 5 persons on this list, celebrity comebacks were achieved via hard work and, in some cases, fanbases prepared to forgive adolescent transgressions.
5. Woody Harrelson
Woody Harrelson was arrested for disorderly behavior three years before he joined the cast of Cheers. The actor was arrested for street dancing, impeding traffic, and resisting arrest. That’s hardly the finest way to start a career, but Harrelson’s roguish charm has become a hallmark, leading to parts in films ranging from Zombieland to True Detective.
4. Jay-Z
Jay Z is one of the most famous faces in the rap business, yet he jeopardized his career in 1999 when he stabbed music producer Lance “Un” Rivera. After the event, the rapper was sentenced to three years on probation, which he appears to have put behind him as he continues to make successful albums.
3. Matthew McConaughey
When Matthew McConaughey was arrested for marijuana possession in 1999, it didn’t help that he was shirtless and playing bongos at the time. McConaughey, on the other hand, has no regrets about the attention-grabbing episode. He later revealed to Playboy “I was not raised to be in jail. What’s wrong with beating on your drums in your birthday suit? I have no regrets about the way I got there.”
2. Britney Spears
Britney Spears seemed to be unable to make headlines for the right reasons in the mid-2000s. When she was charged with hit-and-run following a parking lot fender crash in 2007, her luck didn’t improve. While the accusations appeared to be minor, they were exacerbated by the fact that the singer was battling for custody of her children at the time. Spears is far more likely to make headlines these days for her Las Vegas residency than for running afoul of the law.
1. Bruno Mars
Bruno Mars had a smash album and his entire career ahead of him when he was arrested in Las Vegas in 2010 for cocaine possession. Finally, Mars’ imprisonment taught him an important lesson: his celebrity may go away. Mars reflected on the event with GQ in 2013, saying, “I can take this s–t away from you, young man. That was the lesson. You’ve slaved away for years and years and years. You’ve prepped your whole life. It’s all you know how to do. You’re a kid experiencing life in f–king Sin City, and that was the lesson: It can all be taken away.”
These celebrities comebacks are through hard work and hustle, even after facing time they percevered.
