Who are the A-listers that walked out of awkward interviews?

From punching cameras to cutting off reporters... These 5 stars cut their interviews short - mic drop!

Stepping into the media spotlight to promote a project is standard protocol if you are actor or singer promoting your new project.

While stars are trained to handle tough questions, they sometimes face lines of questioning so invasive or disrespectful that they refuse to play along.

To celebrate the sheer defiance of artists setting hard personal boundaries, we look back at 5 A-listers who pulled off their microphones and walked out of awkward interviews.

Robert Pattinson

During a high-profile television interview with Ryan Seacrest on the E! News red carpet during the height of the Twilight phenomenon, Pattinson drew a strict line regarding his private life. Seacrest repeatedly pressed the actor to confirm his highly publicised, real-life romantic relationship with co-star Kristen Stewart. Refusing to let the host exploit his personal life for ratings, Pattinson froze, smiled awkwardly, and looked to his publicist, who stepped directly into the frame to cut the interview short and pull the actor away from the microphone.

Rihanna

Pop icon Rihanna has never hesitated to shut down media sexism during live press events. During a major promotional panel on 28 March 2012 in London for her sci-fi film debut Battleship, a reporter completely ignored her performance and instead asked a highly personal question about whether her career was being derailed by her complicated, high-profile love life. Rihanna shut the entire line of questioning down instantly, calling the query "highly offensive," before pulling off her microphone transmitter, standing up from the panel, and walking directly out of the press room.

Joaquin Phoenix

The Academy Award winner is famously eccentric when dealing with journalists, but things turned incredibly awkward during an interview with The Telegraph on 20 September 2019 while promoting Joker. The reporter asked Phoenix if he worried that his graphic onscreen portrayal of the comic book villain might inadvertently inspire real-world violence. Taken completely aback by the question, Phoenix froze, muttered, "Why would you? No."

Phoenix stood up and walked out of the room to confer with his publicist for an hour before returning.

Russell Crowe

Russell Crowe didn't take kindly to criticism regarding his performance in the 2010 historical epic Robin Hood. During a radio interview with the BBC’s Mark Lawson in May 2010, the host casually suggested that Crowe’s accent in the film sounded distinctly Irish rather than English. Insulted by the critique of his vocal work, a furious Crowe snapped, "You've got dead ears, mate," before launching into a brief expletive-laden rant, walking out of the studio, and abandoning the live interview completely.

Selena Gomez

Singer-and-actress Selena Gomez chose to protect her mental health over a live media segment during a remote satellite interview with Entertainment Tonight Canada in July 2013. The anchor decided to exploit the live broadcast by asking Gomez a direct question about her ex-boyfriend Justin Bieber's erratic public behavior at the time. Rather than answering or causing a scene, Gomez simply smiled, looked off-camera to her team, and immediately cut the live video feed, leaving the broadcasting studio with dead air.