Hollywood's Top 20 Most Shocking Moments of 2017

From Harvey Weinstein's take down to O.J. Simpson's prison release, it's been a year of shocking stories

By Meg Swertlow Dec 28, 2017 12:00 AMTags
Best of 2017, Hollywood's Top 20 Most Shocking MomentsGetty Images; Melissa Herwitt/E! Illustration

As 2017 nears the end of its impressive and eventful run, we're here remind you of the stories that dropped out jaws, made us gasp and got us to say, "Oh my god!"

From Harvey Weinstein's epic take down (which started a revolution) to O.J. Simpson getting out of prison after nine years in the slammer and the Bachelor in Paradise's fourth season getting put on pause, 2017 has been a series of shocking story after shocking story, some of which were sad, some devastating, many of which were scandalous—and all were shocking.

Take a look at the Top 20 Most Shocking Moments of 2017 (in no particular order), the year that may have been Hollywood's most dramatic one yet...

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The 17 Biggest TV Moments of 2017
Kathy Griffin

The comedy queen shocked the world and got the attention of homeland security when she took to her social media to post a controversial video, which shows the redhead holding up a beheaded, blood-soaked image of President Donald Trump to the camera.

Along with the bloody images, Griffin wrote two tweets. "1/ I caption this "there was blood coming out of his eyes, blood coming out of his...wherever" Also @tylershields great Photog/film maker."

The 56-year-old also wrote, "2/ OBVIOUSLY, I do not condone ANY violence by my fans or others to anyone, ever! I'm merely mocking the Mocker in Chief."

Fans were outraged by the bold move. The Secret Service began investigating her, CNN fired her from hosting their New Year's Eve program with Anderson Cooper, and her national tour was effectively canceled.

She eventually apologized for days later and then two months later took the apology back. Her career has yet to bounce back from the video.

The Conviction of Larry Nassar, the Team USA Olympics Doctor

Larry Nassar was sentenced to 60 years in prison on child pornography charges.

The 54-year-old former U.S. Gymnastics and Michigan State doctor, who plead guilty to seven counts of sexual abuse, was sentenced in a federal court in Michigan on Dec. 7. Nassar plead guilty to three federal child pornography charges in July 2017 and in court he was given the maximum sentence. 

Investigators on the case said they found Nassar in possession of over 37,000 images and videos of child pornography.

Gymnasts McKayla Maroney and Aly Raisman came forward to accused the doctor of sexual abuse.

Mama June's Extreme Makeover

On March 31, Mama June debuted her size 4 figure and her 300-pound weight loss.

The star of Mama June: From Not to Hot underwent countless surgeries to slim down to her smaller size and documented her entire journey on her weekly reality show.

Months later, she's kept the weight off. 

Jim Carrey's Red Carpet Ramble

The funnyman was a bit off during his interview with Catt Sadler during a NYFW event. The awkward red carpet sesh drummed up a lot of response with many fans wondering just what the heck was up with the star.

The Juice is Loose!

After nine years in prison, O.J. Simpson was released from prison just after midnight on October 1 after serving a minimum requirement of nine out of 33 years in jail for a 2007 botched armed robbery in Las Vegas. He had been granted parole in July.

Rob Kardashian Posting Graphic Photos of Ex Blac Chyna

Rob and Chyna's love story is quite the rollercoaster (that went off the rails). The most shocking moment of their relationship was the day that Rob accused Chyna of cheating on him and posted a video of her kissing another man, which he said she sent him. He followed it up with rather graphic, naked pics of his ex and a long rant, during which he revealed he paid $100,000 for her plastic surgery and threatened that she would never see their baby daughter, Dream Kardashian, again unless she stopped "the alcohol and drugs and cocaine and X and E." Chyna responded claiming he had "beat" her.

Chyna followed up by getting a restraining order against her ex. Needless to say, their volatile relationship put the kibosh on the possibility of Rob & Chyna season 2.

Taylor Swift Coming Back From the Dead

T-Swizz came back from the dead only to kill off the "Old Taylor." After a year-long retreat from the spotlight, the hitmaker released the "Look What You Made Me Do" and sent the world into a tizzy with many noting the shady Easter eggs thrown in the song's music video. Tay then put out her sixth studio album, which quickly became the top-selling record of 2017.

Kevin Spacey Comes Out and Apologizes to Anthony Rapp

After years of speculation, the House of Cards actor finally came out as gay in the strangest way possible—apologizing to Anthony Rapp after the actor publicly accused the older star of making a pass at him when he was just 14 years old.

"I have a lot of respect and admiration for Anthony Rapp as an actor," he wrote. "I am beyond horrified to hear his story. I honestly do not remember the encounter as it would have been over 30 years ago. But if I did behave then as he describes I owe him the sincerest apology for what would have been deeply inappropriate drunken behavior and I am sorry for the feelings he described having carried with him all these years."

After the apology, Spacey then chose to open up about his long-rumored sexuality: "This story has encouraged me to address other things in my life...I have loved and had romantic encounters with men throughout my life, and I choose now to live as a gay man."

The double-headed apology did not go over well with the Internet. The star was subsequently dropped from House of Cards and edited out of All the Money in the World.

 

Chris Pratt and Anna Faris Split

Their split confirmed many people's fear—that love was dead.

The stars announced on Aug. 6 that they were "legally separating" after eight years of marriage. 

The 38-year-old Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 star took to his official Facebook page to announce the separation news, writing, "Anna and I are sad to announce we are legally separating. We tried hard for a long time, and we're really disappointed. Our son has two parents who love him very much and for his sake we want to keep this situation as private as possible moving forward."

The statement continued, "We still have love for each other, will always cherish our time together and continue to have the deepest respect for one another."

The statement was signed with both of the actors' names at the end of it.

Abby Lee Miller Goes to Prison

In May, the Dance Moms star was sentenced to one year behind bars, along with being fined $400,000 and ordered to pay a $120,000 judgment.

At the time of her sentencing, she had 45 days to report into prison to start her sentence, which begun on July 12, 2017.

Miller was initially indicted in 2015 on 20 charges of bankruptcy fraud, concealment of bankruptcy assets and false bankruptcy declarations after the FBI, IRS and postal inspectors conducted an investigation.

Selena Gomez Breaks Up With the Weeknd, Gets Back Together With Justin Bieber

Oh what a tangled web these three have weaved! The "Hands to Myself" singer broke up with Abel Tesafaye and then got back together with her the Canadian superstar in a matter of weeks. The whole thing's been major drama rama but one thing's clear—these two don't know how to quit each other.

Selena Gomez Reveals She Had Secret Kidney Surgery

As Gomez announced via Instagram in September that the reason she'd disappeared over the summer was because she'd had a secret kidney transplant given to her by friend Francia Raisa.

"I'm very aware some of my fans had noticed I was laying low for part of the summer and questioning why I wasn't promoting my new music, which I was extremely proud of," she said. "So I found out I needed to get a kidney transplant due to my Lupus and was recovering."

The singer admitted "there aren't enough words" to properly thank her "beautiful friend," the 29-year-old Secret Life of the American Teenager star "She gave me the ultimate gift and sacrifice by donating her kidney to me. I am incredibly blessed. I love you so much sis," the "Fetish" singer wrote. "Lupus continues to be very misunderstood but progress is being made."

The Kardashian pregnancy rumors.

Few things have surprised us more than learning that three of the Kardashians were expecting babies. On Sept. 22, E! News reported that 20-year-old Kylie Jenner was pregnant with Travis Scott's child.  On Sept. 26, E! News also reported that younger sister Khloe Kardashian was pregnant with her first child with boyfriend Tristan Thompson, which she confirmed on Dec. 21. On Sept. 28, Kim Kardashian revealed that she and Kanye West were expecting a third baby via surrogate in September.

Kylie has yet to address the pregnancy reports.

The Suicides of Chris Cornell and Chester Bennington

Former Soundgarden singer performed at a concert and hours later he was found dead in his Detroit hotel room of an apparent suicide on June. 2. The news sent shock waves through the music scene. Then almost two months later, Cornell's dear friend Linkin Park singer Chester Bennington was found dead in the same way on what would have been Cornell's 53rd birthday.

The suicides rocked the world and shocked many who were close with both singers.

Scott Disick and Sofia Richie Are Dating

We definitely didn't see that coming. Lionel Richie's teenage daughter, who had previously dated Justin Bieber, took up with Kourtney Kardashian's 34-year-old ex. Despite the messy connections and the 15-year age difference, the two have been all about each other for months. The two love a good 'gram during a sunny vacation.

Chris Soules Arrested After Deadly Car Crash

The Bachelor star was arrested after a deadly car crash in Iowa. After the arrest, his spokesperson released a statement to E! News, which read: "Chris Soules was involved in an accident Monday evening (April 24) in a rural part of Iowa near his home. He was devastated to learn that Kenneth Mosher, the other person in the accident, passed away. His thoughts and prayers and with Mr. Mosher's family."

While Soules did check on the man after the crash and report it to authorities while identifying himself, as heard in a released 911 tape, police charged him with "leaving the scene of a fatal accident "resulting in death." He was then formally charged with a "hit and run, resulting in death." If convicted, he could be sent to prison for five years. Soules pleaded not guilty this past May.

Biggest Flub in the History of the Academy Awards

The biggest gaffe of the Academy Awards happened at the 2017 Oscars, when La La Land was announced for the Academy Award for Best Picture...but then it turned out Moonlight was the actual winner for Best Picture—but the truth wasn't revealed  until the cast and crew of La La Land was accepting the award on stage.

La La Land producer Jordan Horowitz quickly took to the microphone and said, "Guys, I'm sorry. There's a mistake. Moonlight, you guys won Best Picture. This is not a joke. I'm afraid they read the wrong thing."

So yeah—that was insane.

Beyonce's Twin Announcement

Leave it to Bey to announce the impending arrival of not one but two babies in a pretty epic way. There was a veil, there were flowers, there was lingerie. It was a whole thing. 

Bachelor in Paradise Paused Amid Drama

In June, E! News was first to break the news that Bachelor in Paradise fourth season abruptly halted production in Mexico.

At the time, Warner Bros. released a statement, "We have become aware of allegations of misconduct on the set of Bachelor in Paradise in Mexico. We have suspended production and we are conducting a thorough investigation of these allegations. Once the investigation is complete, we will take appropriate responsive action."

The halt was the first time that production had stopped in the history of any Bachelor Nation shows.

The internal investigation was launched after a sexual encounter between DeMario Jackson and Corinne Olympios on the first day of production lead two producers to file the misconduct complaints, questioning whether Corinne was able to give consent. Multiple sources told E! News neither producer was present for the incident and hadn't watched footage of the encounter before filling their complaints.  

Eventually the show was cleared but began enforcing stricter rules when it came to contestants' drinking.

Harvey Weinstein's Momentous Take Down

While for some close to the situation may not have been shocked by the news that the The Weinstein's Company's main man had been accused of sexual harassment, assault and rape, many in the industry were taken by surprise when the New York Times published it's scathing expose of the movie mogul, essentially ending his career. His take down was the first move in a major sea change for Hollywood. Subsequently, a series seemingly unending reports of sexual misconduct in Tinsel Town has been come out. Brett Ratner, Kevin Spacey, Louis C.K. Bryan Singer, Dustin HoffmanDanny Masterson, Mario Batali, Morgan Spurlock and more have all been accused of sexual misconduct and sometimes more.

There's been so much disturbing information reported about the disgraced exes that we could have done an entire Top 20 on Weinstein alone and another Top 20 on the other allegations waged against the slew of males. 

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