The biggest movie beefs and controversies of 2018

What would Hollywood be without an obligatory bit of controversy – beef between cast members, audience outrage or the occasional lawsuit? Presumably, the focus would be firmly on the films themselves and we wouldn’t have anything else to say about the actors and directors at all.

But we don’t live in that utopian fantasy land, so here are some of the biggest movie beefs of 2018.

First Man – No American flag planted on the moon

Conservatives were left spitting with rage when director Damien Chazelle decided to leave the American flag planting out of First Man. Depicting Neil Armstrong’s (Ryan Gosling) emotional journey to the lunar surface, Chazelle said he didn’t want to make a “political statement” and that the film was more about the astronaut’s “personal saga”. That explanation didn’t sit well patriots, who argued the movie was ‘anti-American’. Wait until they find out Gosling is Canadian.

Johnny Depp allegedly punched a crew member

Back in July, Johnny Depp was sued for allegedly punching a crew member on the set of Notorious BIG film City of Lies. The court was told that the Crimes of Grindelwald actor punched the individual in the ribs twice, after they tried to wrap filming for the day. The victim claimed that Depp “reeked of alcohol” and that they were even offered $100,0000 (£75,000) to punch him in the face in return.

The Predator – Olivia Munn “isolated” over casting of sex offender

Remarkably, Shane Black’s The Predator managed to make it almost away the way to release without anyone realising that a registered sex offender had been cast in the movie. Black had given a small part to his friend Steven Wilder Striegel, and after the film’s lead Olivia Munn learned of his conviction, she reported it to 20th Century Fox, who promptly removed his scene. The weirdest part here, however, was how long it took Munn’s male castmates to support her decision to expose Striegel. They did eventually back her up, but initially the actress said she felt “isolated” after fighting to have him cut from the film.

Halloween – Jamie Lee Curtis accused of hypocrisy over gun control

The curiously angry people at Fox News accused Jamie Lee Curtis of hypocrisy after she was seen using a firearm in Halloween’s eleventh instalment. However, the actress had never clarified her stance on gun control, only stating after the controversy that she is for regulating assault riffles, but supports the Second Amendment. Talk about shooting first and asking questions later.

The Happytime Murders – Sesame Street’s failed lawsuit

The people behind the Melissa McCarthy-led movie The Happytimes Murders would have been hoping to raise a few eyebrows with their ‘Muppets for adults’ concept, but they probably didn’t expect to get sued over it. The producers of Sesame Street filed a lawsuit against the film after claiming the tagline “No Sesame. All street,” would lead people to believe that it was supported by the beloved children’s programme. However, they couldn’t prove it had confused the general public in court, so they lost the case.

Tiffany Haddish says someone bit Beyonce’s face

Girls Trip star Tiffany Haddish sent celebrity worshipers into meltdown when she revealed that someone had bitten Beyonce on the face, which is apparently possible. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Haddish revealed how she fell out with actress Sanaa Lathan’s step-mum and dad, despite never naming their daughter as the culprit. Lathan later laughed off speculation that she was the phantom biter by stating on Twitter that she’d be more likely to give Beyonce a ‘love bite’.

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