From dating rumors to marriage news and from cheating scandals to celebrities making dangerous remarks, 2022 was filled with ups and downs in the entertainment industry.
- Dec 24, 2022
AceShowbiz - As 2022 is ending soon, it's the perfect time to look back to some of the biggest moments in entertainment industry throughout the year. From dating rumors to marriage news and from cheating scandals to celebrities making dangerous remarks, 2022 was filled with ups and downs in showbiz.
One star ended up on headlines after getting into endless legal trouble, while some others excited fans with pregnancy and wedding news. Family drama was also one of the most talked-about things this year with one big name causing chaos with an on-stage physical altercation at one of the biggest award events.
AceShowbiz has listed some of the biggest media spectacles in 2022. Find out what they are in the list below.
1. Leonardo DiCaprio and Gigi Hadid's Romance Rumors
Anything about who is dating who in the showbiz is always interesting. Rather not surprisingly, when Gigi Hadid and Leonardo DiCaprio sparked dating rumors in September, the news quickly made headlines. The supermodel and the Oscar-winning actor were photographed spending time together at a New York Fashion Week afterparty with a source claiming to Us Weekly that the "Don't Look Up" star has "always had a soft spot" for Gigi.
Further fueling the romance rumors, the pair attended Circoloco's Halloween party together with Bella Hadid, Irina Shayk and art dealer Helly Nahmad at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in early November. The alleged lovebirds were photographed leaving New York City restaurant hotspot Cipriani together in the same month.
The idea of dating Leo was also reportedly welcomed by Gigi's family. Their romance came after they got out of their longterm relationships. The 27-year-old beauty split with Zayn Malik, with whom she shares daughter Khai together, after five years together. Meanwhile, Leo ended his romance with Camila Morrone after four years of dating.
2. Ezra Miller's Public Meltdown
2022 is a rough year for Ezra Miller. "The Flash" actor made big headlines with a slew of public controversies including their multiple arrests. In March, the star was arrested and charged with disorderly conduct of harassment over their alleged involvement in two separate incidents that happened at a karaoke bar in Hawaii. According to HPD, the actor "began yelling obscenities and at one point grabbed the microphone from a 23-year-old woman singing karaoke and later lunged at a 32-year-old man playing darts." A month later, Ezra pleaded no contest to the disorderly conduct charge in court via Zoom call, after which the judge sentenced Ezra with a $500 fine.
The controversy didn't stop there as Ezra got a restraining order after two Hilo residents claimed that "The Perks of Being a Wallflower" star harassed and threatened them, though the case was dismissed per the pair's request two weeks later. Ezra's legal trouble continued when they was arrested and charged with second-degree assault on April 19 after being found during a traffic stop at the intersection of Highway 130 and Kukula Street in Kea'au, Hawaii. They was also accused of grooming in June and was accused of stealing alcohol from a man's home in Vermont in August, though they pleaded not guilty to the burglary charge in October.
In the wake of the controversies, Ezra said in a statement that they "apologize" for their "past behavior." They also shared that they had begun seeking treatment for "complex mental health issues."
3. Rihanna's Pregnancy
Instead of new music, Rihanna delivered a baby this year, literally. Fans celebrated the news of Rihanna's pregnancy after the "Umbrella" hitmaker was photographed walking hand-in-hand in New York City back in January as she was seen flaunting her baby bump. A few days later, the Fenty founder took to Instagram to share the big news that she and A$AP Rocky were expecting their first child together, posting a picture of herself looking down at her enlarged belly. "How the gang pulled up to black history month," so she captioned the post.
The Grammy-winning musician, who is known to be private when it comes to her love life, threw a private rave-themed baby shower in April with a neon dress code. The guests allegedly had their phone locked in pouches upon arrival as filming and photography were banned.
The couple welcomed their first child, a baby boy, in May. While still keeping things low-key, Rih offered a rare update on her son in November while on the set of her Savage X Fenty Vol. 4 show, calling him a "happy" baby. The 34-year-old also treated fans to the first look at her son in December by sharing a TikTok video of the tot smiling and laughing while sitting in the backseat of a car.
4. Adele's Las Vegas Residency Drama
Adele's left her fans disappointed in January when she abruptly canceled her Las Vegas residency "Weekends With Adele" just less than a day before she was scheduled to hit the stage at Caesars Palace Hotel and Casino. The Grammy-winning singer, who tearfully announced the last-minute postponement on Instagram, was met with huge backlash as fans had already traveled all the way to Las Vegas to catch the pop superstar's performance for her sold-out shows and weren't able to refund their hotel or flight tickets due to short notice.
While Adele shared that she decided to postpone the shows indefinitely due to COVID-19, rumor has it that there was big drama behind-the-scenes involving the "Easy on Me" hitmaker and the set designer, Esmeralda Devlin. According to multiple reports, the British beauty was unhappy with the set and asked for "endless changes" to the set list and running order which caused tension between the two. "There was no real clarity around what Adele wanted for the show because of the endless changes being made to the production," one source said.
Later in July, Adele took to Instagram to finally announce rescheduled dates for her much-awaited residency. It kicked off on November 18 and will run through March 25, 2023. In addition to the 24 rescheduled shows, new shows had been announced, including three on Christmas Eve.
5. Adam Levine's Cheating Scandal
One of the biggest scandals this year is definitely Adam Levine's infidelity. Back in September, fans had a field day after model Sumner Stroh posted on TikTok a screenshot of her and the Maroon 5 frontman's flirty DM exchange. In the June message, the husband of Behati Prinsloo could be seen asking her about using her name for his forthcoming baby. The bizarre conversation prompted more women to come forward with allegations that they also got flirty DMs from the singer. Among the women were comedian Maryka, a woman named Alyson Rose and yoga instructor Alanna Zabel.
A few days later, Adam released a statement in which he denied the affair but admitted to "poor judgment." The "She Will Be Loved" hitmaker said, "My wife and my family is all I care about in this world. To be this naive and stupid enough to risk the only thing that truly matters to me was the greatest mistake I could ever make. I will never make it again. I take full responsibility. We will get through it. And we will get through it together." Following the statement, another woman, an Auburn University student named Ashley Russell, revealed that Adam sent flirty texts to her in March.
Despite the allegations, Adam and Behati put on a united front by stepping out together on several occasions. The Victoria's Secret model, who was allegedly "upset" by her singer husband's scandal, broke her social media silence in October by sharing on Instagram Story a throwback photo of her flipping off the photographer.
6. Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck's Marriage
Not all 2022 big headlines were negative. Jennifer Lopez and Ben Affleck's rekindled romance took a big part of showbiz news headlines when they got married in Las Vegas in July. The "Jenny From the Block" singer announced their marriage in her newsletter, saying that the nuptials were "exactly what we wanted."
Reflecting on their broken engagement years ago, she added, "In the end, it was the best possible wedding we could have imagined. One we dreamed of long ago and one made real (in the eyes of the state, Las Vegas, a pink convertible and one another) at very, very long last."
Following a romantic honeymoon in Paris, the couple, who was initially engaged in 2002 before splitting in 2004, had a second and more formal wedding ceremony in Georgia. At her star-studded second wedding, the actress/singer looked stunning in her three Ralph Lauren wedding dresses. The "Hustlers" star also shared that she walked down the aisle as Marc Cohn performed "The Things We've Handed Down" with their combined five kids following her.
7. Joe Rogan vs Spotify
Joe Rogan and Spotify were at the center of a massive controversy after the host of popular "The Joe Rogan Experience" podcast was accused of spreading misinformation about COVID-19 vaccine. On January 12, 270 medical professionals, including scientists, professors, doctors and healthcare workers, sent an open letter to Spotify to ask the music platform to institute a misinformation policy following episode #1757 of the podcast featuring Dr. Robert Malone.
Neil Young was also among those who criticized Spotify for giving Joe a platform to spread fake information about vaccines. In his statement, the musician asked for his music to be removed from Spotify due to the matter. Spotify responded by removing his music. As Neil asked fellow artists to join him in boycotting the streamer, Joni Mitchell, Nils Lofgren of the E Street Band, Graham Nash, India.Arie followed suit. India also noted that Joe used the N-word for his podcast while speaking about black people.
Later, Joe offered an apology for using the racial slur while trying to give context to the conversation. Spotify also revealed in a statement on January 30 that it would add COVID-19 content advisories to podcast episodes that discuss the pandemic, but refused to remove his show. Defending himself from the misinformation allegations, the UFC commentator thanked Spotify for the support. "I want to show all kinds of opinions so we can all figure out what's going on and not just about COVID, about everything, about health, about fitness, wellness, the state of the world itself," he argued in his video.
8. Ne-Yo's Cheating Scandal
Adam Levine's infidelity isn't the only big cheating scandal this year. Ne-Yo made headlines after her wife Crystal Smith accused him of cheating on her in an emotional statement. "8 years of life and deception. 8 years of unknowingly sharing my life and husband with numerous women who sell their bodies to him unprotected … every last one of them," the 36-year-old model wrote on July 30 on Instagram. "To say I'm heartbroken and disgusted is [an] understatement," she continued, before asking people to "stop sending" her videos or information about the "Miss Independent" hitmaker's alleged cheating. She also made it clear in her post that she's "not a victim. I'm choosing to stand tall with my head held high. If someone can't love you the way you deserve then it's up to you to love yourself. With no hate in my heart, I wish him nothing but the best."
As for Ne-Yo, he responded to the bombshell allegations in a tweet, in which he asked for privacy for the sake of their children, Shaffer (6), Roman (3) and Isabella (1). Crystal officially pulled the plug on their marriage by filing for divorce from him on August 1, citing that their marriage is "irretrievably broken with no hope for reconciliation." She added in her court documents that he "fathered a child with another woman."
He responded by requesting a judge to place a gag order on Crystal and refusing to pay her spousal support. Not stopping there, it was reported in September that the R&B star and a woman named Sade, who already have a baby together that was conceived while he's married to Crystal, are allegedly expecting another child amid his divorce from his now-estranged wife.
9. Britney Spears' Family Drama
Even after her conservatorship ended in November 2021, Britney Spears' family drama isn't over yet. In August, the "Toxic" singer's ex-husband Kevin Federline revealed in a bombshell interview that their sons, Jayden James and Sean Preston Federline, hadn't seen her for months and made the decision not to go to her wedding to Sam Asghari. He also insinuated that he supported Britney's past conservatorship and added that their sons were uncomfortable with her racy social media posts. Clapping back at Kevin's claims, the "...Baby One More Time" hitmaker revealed in a statement that her teenage sons said "hurtful" things to her despite her giving them everything. She also accused her sons of "being rude" and "hateful" to her. Sam also entered the chat by defending Britney and slamming Kevin for supporting the "cruel 13-year [conservatorship]."
Things got worse when Kevin shared now-deleted videos via Instagram of his ex-wife seemingly arguing with their young sons. In September, Jayden broke his silence in an interview with Daphne Barak in which he said that the pop star seemingly "struggled giving us both attention and showing us equal love."
In her response to the sit-down, Britney insisted that she's tried her best "at being the best person I can be." The 42-year-old added, "I hope my kids one day understand my reasoning. I send all the love in the world to you every day for the rest of my life!!!" Being estranged to her sons also appeared to take a toll on Britney as she shared that she has "no purpose" anymore. "I was told you guys have blocked me. But I will speak here. … I'm so blessed to even call you mine, and I just want you to know I apologize," the "I'm a Slave 4 U" shared in an Instagram post.
10. Pete Davidson's Love Stories
Pete Davidson's popularity among women is certainly undebatable. This year alone, the "Saturday Night Live" alum was romantically linked to three women including Kim Kardashian, whom he started dating in October 2021 after meeting on the NBC comedy show. They had been flaunting PDAs on-and-off social media before the couple decided to end things for good in August.
Probably thanks to his BDE (Big D**k Energy), it didn't take long for the comedian to move on from the SKIMS founder as he was reported to be dating model Emily Ratajkowski in November. The alleged lovers fueled the speculation after they were spotted hanging out together on several occasions. In addition to being seen cuddling to each other outside the "Gone Girl" actress' apartment and spending Thanksgiving together, they enjoyed some time in public by [u=/news/view/00196352.html[attending[u] a basketball game.
The romance, however, fizzled out rather quickly. As Emily was seen reuniting with her former fling DJ Orazio Rispo several times amid her rumored romance with Pete, the funnyman himself has been spending time together with Chase Sui Wonders, his "Bodies, Bodies, Bodies" co-star. His rep, however, clarified that they are just friends and not an item.
11. Queen Elizabeth II's Death
The world mourned the death of Queen Elizabeth II on September 8 after she was placed under the "medical supervision" of her doctors. Buckingham Palace said in a statement that the British monarch "died peacefully" at Balmoral with her daughter Princess Anne being with her during her last 24 hours. Following her passing, Queen Elizabeth II's eldest son King Charles was formally proclaimed as the new monarch in a ceremony in London.
The U.K. officially entered its national mourning period as soon as Elizabeth died, and it lasted until her funeral on September 19. The state funeral for the Queen included processions through Edinburgh, London and Windsor and the coffin was adorned with the Imperial State Crown, the Orb and the Scepter. The first procession took place on September 12 and was followed with a second one on September 14.
In the final procession that was broadcast worldwide, her casket was taken from London to her final resting place in Windsor. The late monarch was eventually buried in a prepared tomb at the King George VI Memorial Chapel in St George's Chapel at Windsor Castle alongside Philip.
12. Nick Cannon's Ever-Expanding Offspring
Nick Cannon continues to grow his family tree in 2022. "The Masked Singer" host, who is already known for his large offspring, welcomed four children with four different women this year alone, making him a father of 11 kids. The TV personality first welcomed Legendary Love with baby mama Bre Tiesi on June 28. In the same month, Abby De La Rosa confirmed that she was pregnant with her third child with Nick. More blessings came for Nick as model LaNisha Cole gave birth to Onyx Ice Cole on September 14 and Brittany Bell gave birth to their child together, Rise Messiah, in weeks apart.
In November, the "Nick Cannon Presents: Wild 'N Out" host revealed that he's expecting her 12th child as Alyssa Scott announced that she's pregnant with her second baby with the star. Their firstborn Zen died from cancer at the age of 5 months in late 2021. Just a few days later, Nick welcomed his 11th child as Abby gave birth to Beautiful Zeppelin, her third child with Nick.
Being a father of 11 surely is not easy as the 42-year-old, who also shares twins Moroccan and Monroe with ex-wife Mariah Carey, recently opened up about his "biggest guilt" over having many children. "I don't get to spend enough time with all my children," the star explained on "The Checkup with Dr. David Agus". "One 'cause I'm constantly working and two because I'm just spread thin."
13. Gisele Bundchen and Tom Brady's Marriage Rift
Gisele Bundchen and Tom Brady are one of celebrity couple goals until it was rumored that there was tension between them. According to rumors, the pair went through a difficult time in their marriage after the Tampa Bay Buccaneers quarterback decided to un-retire from the NFL.
The athlete initially shocked fans when announcing his retirement in February, only to change his decision in April. The decision almost unsurprisingly didn't sit well with the model, who was rumored for years that she's not happy when the seventh-time Super Bowl champion was away too often.
After weeks of speculation, the Brazilian beauty eventually filed for divorce from Tom in October. They officially ended their 13-year marriage when they finalized their divorce only a few hours after the papers were filed. The paperwork officially declared the marriage as dissolved and "irretrievably broken," while the exes reportedly "agreed to joint custody of the kids."
14. Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's Bombshell Netflix Series
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle's royal drama is one of the biggest spectacles in 2022. Even before its December 8 premiere, "Harry & Meghan" made headlines with its behind-the-scenes dramas as the Duke and Duchess of Sussex reportedly kept asking Netflix to edit stuff out of the docuseries in the wake of Queen Elizabeth II's death. A report also claimed that the pair gave conflicting remarks to what Harry wrote for his upcoming tell-all book.
On the 6-part show, meanwhile, the Sussexes detailed their love story, covering the moment of their first meeting until their life in Montecito, California following their royal family exit. Among the bombshells, Harry insinuated that the way British media treated Meghan was no different than how it did to his late mom Lady Diana, and he's afraid that his wife could possibly end up like his mom. The couple also talked about how their engagement interview was an "orchestrated reality show," the drama with Meghan's father Thomas and stepsister Samantha Markle and the Duchess' miscarriage. Meghan also accused Prince Harry's brother Prince William of authorizing aid to give evidence against her during their privacy lawsuit with Mail. Not stopping there, Harry accused the palace establishment of lying to "protect" William but not him.
Upon watching the series, the public showed mixed response to the bombshell show. Some showed support for Harry and Meghan, while some others further criticized the pair. The British royal family, meanwhile, has yet to comment on the series though reports claimed that William and his wife Princess Kate don't plan to watch it anytime soon.
15. Kanye West's Anti-Semiticism
Also making headlines this year is Kanye West, no thanks to his controversial remarks. The Yeezy designer first came under fire after he introduced his "White Lives Matter" T-shirts during Paris Fashion Week in October and later criticized Black Lives Matter. The "Donda" artist then further sparked outrage when he made anti-Semitic remarks in an Instagram post, in which he claimed he would do "death con" on Jewish people, earning him massive backlash from public and fellow celebrities. His comments also led several brands, including Adidas, Gap and Balenciaga, to publicly announce that they dropped the musician due to his troubling remarks about Jewish.
Despite the backlash, Ye kept making more anti-Semitic comments in several interviews and social media posts. The ex-husband of Kim Kardashian did apologize to people who were hurt by his "death con" comment though he still stands by his opinion that the industry is being controlled by the "Jewish mafia."
This month, Ye further stunned people when he shared on Twitter an image of the Star of David and a swastika combined. The "Gold Digger" rapper, who announced his 2024 presidential bid, was then suspended from Twitter despite being brought back to the platform for a while. Instagram and Clubhouse followed suit in suspending Ye from the platforms.
16. Johnny Depp v. Amber Heard Trial
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard's defamation trial is also one of the most talked-about things this year. Back in 2019, the "Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them" actor sued his ex-wife in a $50 million lawsuit for defamation over her op-ed for the Washington Post in which she spoke about the treatment of women in domestic abuse cases. In January 2022, Amber countersued Depp for $100 million.
The 7-week libel trial began on April 11 in Fairfax, Virgina. While taking the stand on October 20, Johnny called Amber the real abuser in their relationship and detailed how she severed his finger with a vodka bottle during a fight. As for Amber, she talked about being physically abused by Johnny during the trial. In June, jurors reached their verdict as they found both Johnny and Amber liable for defamation against each other. They awarded Johnny with $10 million in compensatory damages and $5 million in punitive damages, which were reduced to $350,000 due to a limit imposed by Virginia state law, while Amber was awarded $2 million in damages from Johnny.
In response, Amber's lawyers filed an appeal in Virginia requesting that the defamation lawsuit against her be reversed, or a new trial to be granted. Earlier this month, Amber announced on Instagram that she had decided to settle Johnny's defamation case against her by agreeing to pay him $1 million.
17. Will Smith's Oscars Slap
Oscars is always one thing that people anticipate every year, but what happened at the 2022 Academy Awards overshadowed the awards themselves. People were shocked when Will Smith took the stage to slap comedian Chris Rock at the March 30 event after the latter joked about Will's wife Jada Pinket Smith's shaved head due to autoimmune disease alopecia. "Jada, I love ya. 'G.I. Jane 2,' can't wait to see it," Chris joked at the time. Not stopping there, Will screamed profanities at Chris from his seat as yelling, "Keep my wife's name out of your f**king mouth!"
Later that night, Will took the stage to receive his best actor award for his portrayal of Richard Williams in "King Richard". Stars later started to react to the scuffle with some of them showing support to Will for standing up for his wife. While Chris decided not to press charges against the actor, the Academy shared that it's launching a formal review over the incident.
Will then publicly apologized, admitting that his behavior was "unacceptable and inexcusable." The actor also decided to step away from the Academy with the organization banning him from Oscars for 10 years. As for Chris, he has yet to make a public statement though he joked about the slap at his comedy shows.
18. Megan Thee Stallion and Tory Lanez's Shooting Trial
After 2 years of drama, Megan Thee Stallion and Tory Lanez's trial over a July 2020 shooting incident finally took place. Kicking off on December 12, the trial saw the Canadian star denying being the one who pulled the trigger on the "WAP" hitmaker following a party at Kylie Jenner's house. Instead, his legal team tried to prove that it was Kelsey Nicole Harris, Meg's former best friend, who might have pulled the trigger.
As for Megan, the Hot Girl Summer first shut down Tory's legal team's claim that she was kicked out of Kylie's party because she was drunk and irate. The Houston native additionally testified that Tory threatened her and offered her a million dollars if she was silent after being shot by him. Also testifying for the case was Kelsey. On December 14, Kelsey testified that the Houston Hottie was "acting out and drunk" at the party. When prosecutor Kathy Ta asked if Tory had threatened to shoot her, Kelsey refused to answer questions by taking the Fifth even though she previously testified that Tory threatened to shoot her.
Eventually on December 23, Tory was found guilty of all three charges against him, including felony negligent discharge of a firearm, assault with a semiautomatic firearm, and carrying a loaded and unregistered firearm. He will be sentenced on January 27. 2023 following the verdict. Tory now faces more than 22 years in prison and will likely be deported back to his home country of Canada.
