16 Celebrity Feuds That Started Over Something Soooooo Surprisingly Petty

Kayla YandoliThu, July 23, 2026 at 4:31 PM UTC

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New York Daily News Archive / NY Daily News via Getty Images1. Elton John and Madonna feuded for decades after he slammed her James Bond theme, "Die Another Day," back in 2002, calling it the "worst Bond tune ever." Then, when she won Best Live Act at the 2004 Q Awards, he went even harder, saying at the same ceremony, "Madonna, best live act? F*ck off," while accusing her of lip-syncing. Madonna, however, mostly let the remarks hang in the air.Their relationship remained strained for more than 20 years before Madonna approached Elton backstage at Saturday Night Live in 2025, and he apologized. Two legendary careers, decades of tension, and it all began with one man disliking a movie theme song. What a world...

@Madonna / Via x.com

2. In 2014, Martha Stewart found possibly the most Martha Stewart way to shade Gwyneth Paltrow: through pie. First, Martha criticized Gwyneth's move into the lifestyle space with her brand, Goop, at one point saying, "[Gwyneth] just needs to be quiet. She's a movie star. If she were confident in her acting, she wouldn't be trying to be Martha Stewart."

Kevin Mazur / WireImage / Getty ImagesThen, the pettiness reached wild heights when Martha Stewart Living published a pie feature titled "Conscious Coupling," which is an unmistakable reference to the phrase Gwyneth and Chris Martin used when announcing their separation. The pies were described as perfect marriages between crusts and fillings. Gwyneth eventually acknowledged the alleged feud between the two lifestyle icons, saying, "No one has ever said anything bad about me before, so I'm shocked and devastated. I'll try to recover. If I'm really honest, I'm so psyched that she sees us as competition. I really am."

WWD / Penske Media via Getty Images3. Rihanna and Ciara's feud started because Ciara said Rihanna "wasn't the nicest" at a party. During a 2011 appearance on Fashion Police, Ciara mentioned having a less-than-pleasant encounter with Rihanna. Rihanna responded on Twitter by sarcastically asking if she had forgotten to tip Ciara, prompting Ciara to warn that Rihanna wouldn't want to see her "on or off the stage." Rihanna then delivered the instantly iconic "Good luck with bookin that stage u speak of" comeback.

Jason Kempin / FilmMagic / Getty Images

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But 14 years later, Riri and Cici buried the hatchet and appeared to finally put the feud behind them at the 2025 Met Gala. Ciara said about her reunion with Rihanna, "It was so sweet running into her. I just have to shout her out because I'm so proud of her."

Kevin Mazur / Getty Images for The Met Museum / Vogue4. In 2016, Kim Kardashian and Chloë Grace Moretz fought over a selfie. After Kim posted a nude mirror selfie, joking that she had nothing to wear, Chloë replied that young women should be taught they have more to offer than their bodies.

Pascal Le Segretain /  Alex Huckle / Getty ImagesKim "welcomed" Chloë to Twitter with: "Let's all welcome @ChloeGMoretz to Twitter, since no one knows who she is," and she sarcastically complimented her Nylon cover. In Glamour, Chloë described what it was like to receive Kim's "welcome" Tweet to her: "I don't have 45 million followers or a TV show that follows my life. But people know who I am. I pride myself on having opinions, and I don't express them in snarky ways toward people."

Anthony Harvey / Getty Images5. Kelly Osbourne and Lady Gaga were already feuding, but what sent the fight to the next level was something hilariously frivolous — a birthday cake Gaga send Osbourne through her mother Sharon. Gaga was attempting to extend an olive branch to Kelly by giving Sharon a cake for Kelly while they were both appearing on The X Factor UK, but Kelly was unimpressed, asking why Gaga had sent the cake through her mother in another country instead of sending it directly to her.

Michael Kovac / Getty Images for EJAFThe feud began when Kelly had criticized Gaga's style on Fashion Police years earlier, including reportedly calling her a "butterface." Gaga later wrote an open letter objecting to the cruelty of shows like Fashion Police, and Sharon Osbourne fired back, accusing Gaga of hypocrisy because Gaga's fans had allegedly attacked Kelly online. So by the time Gaga handed Sharon a birthday cake for Kelly on The X Factor UK in 2013, it was understood as a peace offering — but Kelly saw it as a publicity stunt, not a sincere gesture.

@KellyOsbourne / Via x.com

6. Mariah Carey and Jennifer Lopez's feud became immortal because Mariah said those four iconic words: "I don't know her." In 2003, when a German TV interviewer asked Mariah for her opinion of Jennifer as an artist, she smiled and responded, "I don't know her." What could technically have been a literal answer became one of the greatest celebrity insults in pop culture history.

Christopher Polk / Bob Riha Jr / Getty Images

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Although there was reportedly preexisting tension involving their music and Mariah's ex-husband, Tommy Mottola, that small comment transformed the rumored rivalry into a decadeslong phenomenon.

taff / UnterföhringYears later, Jennifer Lopez and Mariah Carey went on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen on separate occasions, each expressing their side of the feud. Mariah has maintained that she still doesn't know Jennifer, while Jennifer doesn't understand why this tiff happened in the first place. And unfortunately, over 20 years later, they've yet to settle their feud...can't we all just get along???

Bravo7. Justin Bieber crashed Drake Bell's album party after Drake spent years insulting him on Twitter. Drake repeatedly criticized Justin's appearance, music, and behavior online, often provoking Justin's huge fan base in the process. Drake Tweeted insulting things like, "When is someone going to tell this idiot he can't draw. His art is almost as bad as his music. Talentless artless."

Allen Berezovsky / Jonathan Leibson / Getty ImagesIn 2014, Justin finally responded to Drake's online abuse by showing up outside of his album-release party, rolling down his car window, and attracting a crowd of fans who completely diverted attention from the event. In 2025, Drake insisted there was no "real beef" between him and Justin, but there still hasn't been a reconciliation. And having your release party upstaged by the person you kept tweeting about feels like...well, a targeted form of revenge, lol.8. George Clooney and Russell Crowe fell out over whether movie stars should appear in commercials. Russell publicly criticized actors who accepted advertising deals, naming George as one of the celebrities. In a 2020 interview with GQ, George recalled, "Just out of the blue, [Russell's] like, 'I'm not some sellout like Robert De Niro and Harrison Ford and George Clooney.' I'm like, 'Where the f*ck did that come from?'" The disagreement continued even after Russell sent an apology that George considered insincere.

Gilbert Carrasquillo / Pietro S. D'Aprano / Getty ImagesIn an interview with Esquire, George revealed even more details about his feud with Russell: "The truth is that he did send me a book of poems to apologize for insulting the sh*t out of me, which he did. He picked a fight with me. He started it for no reason at all."

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9. Taylor Swift and Katy Perry reportedly had a falling out over three backup dancers (that's right: backup dancers). In 2013, Taylor's backup dancers from her Red tour left to join Katy's Prismatic World tour. They continued to fuel the fire when Taylor released "Bad Blood" (a diss track about Perry) in 2014, and Perry responded with "Swish Swish" in 2017.

Kevin Mazur / WireImage / Getty ImagesKaty later confirmed that the dispute "started over backup dancers," and somehow this scheduling conflict helped fuel years of interview jabs, subtweets, and alleged diss tracks before they reconciled. If you watch Taylor's 2019 music video for "You Need to Calm Down," you'll see her and Katy happily hugging in hamburger and French-fry costumes, ending their feud for good.

Republic10. At the 2001 Grammys, Moby criticized Eminem's music for what it truly is. Moby said that Eminem was a "misogynist and homophobe and racist and antisemite." Eminem responded to him in his song "Without Me," devoting several lines to mocking Moby and declaring him too old. Eminem rapped: "And Moby? You can get stomped by Obie. You 36-year-old bald-headed f*ck, blow me. You don't know me, you're too old, let go. It's over, nobody listens to techno."

Jo Hale / Scott Gries / Getty ImagesMoby initially said he found the diss amusing and has since softened his opinion of Eminem, praising his more progressive public positions. Still, the idea that 36 was once considered ancient enough to warrant retirement is offensive as a 30-something!

Shady / Aftermath / Interscope11. Madonna and Lady Gaga's feud started because people thought two of their songs sounded alike. When Gaga released "Born This Way" in 2011, listeners immediately compared it to Madonna's "Express Yourself" from 1989. When asked about the similarities between the two mega hits, Madonna described Gaga's song as "reductive" and later incorporated the two tracks into a pointed concert mashup.

Dimitrios Kambouris / Getty ImagesGaga said she remained an admirer of Madonna, but wished she had criticized her to her face. In her 2017 documentary Gaga: Five Foot Two, she said, "The thing with me and Madonna, for example, is that I admired her always. And I still admire her, no matter what she might think of me." At the 2019 Academy Awards, they seemed to have reconciled after Gaga won Best Original Song. Madonna uploaded a picture of them with the caption: "Don't Mess with Italian Girls." But the original controversy was essentially an argument over whether a chord progression and melody sounded a little too familiar, which really felt like a reach, to be honest.

Instagram: @jr12. Shaquille O'Neal and Dwight Howard spent years feuding over who got to be called "Superman." Dwight wore a Superman shirt and cape during the 2008 NBA Slam Dunk Contest, apparently infringing on a nickname Shaq already considered his own. Shaq felt insulted, and tweeted at Dwight: "So u wear a cape and win a dunk contest and they call u superman."

Fernando Medina / NBAE via Getty ImagesShaq repeatedly insisted that there could be only one Superman, while Dwight grew suuuuuper (pun intended) frustrated with his criticism. The two basketball legends continued trading jabs for years, with Dwight eventually wondering whether they needed to fight. According to Shaq, they reconciled at a bar: "I turn, and I see Dwight behind me. And I'm like, oh sh*t, here we go. We're about to tear this motherf*cker up." Dwight then asked if they could talk, and Shaq responded, "Hey man, what makes you think I don't like you?" In 2025, Shaq helped walk Dwight out during the Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony. All is well in NBA land.

Jesse D. Garrabrant / NBAE via Getty Images

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13. Anjelica Huston and Jacki Weaver briefly feuded over an "old-lady cheerleader movie." While discussing the kind of projects she didn't want to make, Anjelica dismissed Poms, starring Diane Keaton and Jacki Weaver, as an "old-lady cheerleader movie." Jacki responded by calling Anjelica's remarks "mean and petty," turning a random comment about a movie Anjelica wasn't even in into an actual celebrity dispute. Anjelica later expressed regret and said she hoped she hadn't hurt anyone's feelings. We don't know if the legendary actors made up or not (hopefully they did!).

Variety / Gilbert Flores / Getty Images14. Elton John and Rod Stewart's lifelong frenemy dynamic began because Rod changed some song lyrics. In the early '70s, Rod recorded a cover of Elton's "Country Comfort" but altered the lyrics, prompting Elton to publicly complain: "He changed the lyrics, something I complained about at length in the press. He sounds like he made it up as he went along!"

Evening Standard / Getty ImagesThat set the tone for decades of mutual pranks. More recently, Elton said that the two still aren't in the best place. In his 2019 memoir Me, regarding Rod's approach to music, Elton wrote: "I certainly didn't feel like I needed a lecture on the feral spirit of rock and roll from someone who'd spent most of the last decade crooning his way through the Great American Songbook and 'Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas.'" Rod reached out to Elton to get together for some family time, but he never responded.

Kevin Mazur / WireImage / Getty Images15. Nicki Minaj called out Miley Cyrus at the 2015 MTV Video Music Awards over one answer in an interview. Before hosting the VMAs, Miley told The New York Times that she didn't think Nicki had handled her recent complaints about "Anaconda" not being nominated. She said they "weren't polite." But while accepting an award during the live show, Nicki abruptly turned toward Miley and asked, "Miley, what's good?" MTV later confirmed that the confrontation was real.

Lester Cohen / Getty ImagesAfter the 2015 VMAs, Nicki addressed her feud with Miley. "The fact that you feel upset about me speaking on something that affects Black women makes me feel like you have some big balls," she told the New York Times. "You're in videos with Black men, and you're bringing out Black women on your stages, but you don't want to know how Black women feel about something that's so important? Come on, you can't want the good without the bad." Nicki and Miley still have bad blood.

MTV16. And finally, Sarah Jessica Parker and Kim Cattrall's feud allegedly began while filming Sex and the City, with Kim claiming in 2004 that they weren't friends — they were "professional actresses." Things escalated through the years and became more public in the late 2010s. When Kim's brother died in 2018, and Sarah Jessica showed her support, Kim called her out on Instagram: "I don't need your love or support at this tragic time, @sarahjessicaparker."

Kevin Mazur / WireImage / Getty ImagesKim didn't want to film a third Sex and the City movie, which also sparked some drama. "I would have preferred for [Sarah Jessica Parker, Cynthia Nixon, Kristin Davis, and myself] to have some kind of event to warrant a third film. That didn't happen — but also, I was ready," Kim told Variety in 2022. "As difficult as it was, and as scary as it is to stand up and not be bullied by the press or the fans or whoever, to just say, 'I'm good. I'm on this track. It was so great working with you. I so enjoyed it, but I'm over here.'"

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