Strange Celeb Facts That Would Definitely Make It In The Biopic

By Khazeena R

We often put celebrities on pedestals. There’s a certain fascination, reverence, or admiration for these talented people that have impacted our lives without even knowing it. Movie stars bring our favorite superheroes to life and can give us someone to look up to. Musicians produce hits that can really hit home and trigger emotions both good and bad. It’s thanks to their talent, and some luck, that they get to live life in the spotlight.

People can’t get enough of talk shows and interviews, and they allow fans to get a glimpse into the lives of even the most private celebs. During those chats, celebrities sometimes drop some odd trivia that make them stand out, even among the stars.

From odd tattoos to missed opportunities, here are 40+ crazy facts about some of your favorite celebrities.

Tom Cruise’s Asymmetrical Face

What makes someone attractive? Sure, we can tell if an actor is good-looking or not, but what characteristics determine that — other than instinct? While some people have an attraction to certain features, there’s one that is considered attractive to everyone: symmetry.

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Scientific studies have even backed this up. Knowing that we would expect all those drop-dead gorgeous actors to have perfectly symmetrical faces, but some are so suave our brains don’t care. Tom Cruise, for example, actually has an asymmetrical face.

Ashton Kutcher’s Webbed Toes

Ashton Kutcher is always a pleasure to watch on screen, and with his fantastic acting skills, he can easily trick us into thinking he’s just an ordinary guy. But if you catch him wearing flip-flops, there’s something you don’t see very often.

Image source: aplusk/Instagram

He has syndactyly, aka webbed toes. The actor showed this to the world on a British talk show, a few years ago. And, Kutcher has another secret that might surprise you. His real name is Christopher! Yeah, Christopher Kutcher doesn’t have the same ring to it.

Scarlett Johansson Has a Twin Brother

Even celebs that love their star status often keep their families out of the spotlight. That’s why you’ll only find pictures of their spouses or kids in gossip columns. But one star doesn’t try to hide her brother. Scarlett Johansson’s twin can even be spotted on the red carpet!

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His name is Hunter Johansson, and it seems like good looks run in the family. Although Hunter started out as an actor too, he’s most passionate about charity projects and giving back to the world. The twin siblings can be seen together on red carpets and have a close bond.

Jennifer Lawrence’s Tattoo

People get tattoos for a variety of reasons. Some simply love the look, while others want to have something precious or memorable with them at all times. Even celebrities have visited the tattoo parlor at least once. One such example is Jennifer Lawrence.

Image source: Vogue/YouTube

Lawrence got a tattoo on her hand to serve as a reminder to drink plenty of water. That’s right, she got the chemical formula for water stamped on her hand. Though, we do think it’s worth noting that no one double-checked her tat. The 2 should be subscript, not superscript.

Lady Gaga and Ghosts

Lady Gaga might easily be one of the quirkiest celebs we know of, but her strange public persona is still not the weirdest thing about her. Did you know that she’s so scared of ghosts and the paranormal, that she spends a lot of money on ghostbusting equipment?

Image source: ladygaga/Instagram

The pop star thinks she’s the reincarnation of her late aunt and believes in the existence of evil spirits. She pays a lot to check every hotel and venue before she ever gets there. She even owns an Electro Magnetic Field machine to detect anything paranormal.

Christopher Walken Used to be a Lion Tamer

Sure, we have heard about the past lives of our favorite celebs before they became successful. But Christopher Walken’s previous job experience might just be the strangest one out there. When he was 16 years old, the actor made money however he could.

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One of his jobs was being a lion tamer at a circus. Well, he was technically an assistant for the head lion tamer. Walken talked about his experience with the lion Sheba and said that she was a very sweet creature.

Paris Hilton Built a Dog Mansion

Ah, the lifestyles of the rich and the famous. With that fame comes wealth, and some are pretty open about their spending habits. With millions of dollars to their names, celebrities can afford to buy strange things no ordinary person could conceive of.

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Paris Hilton doesn’t just live in a mansion; her dogs do, too! And, no, it’s not the same one she lives in. She spent more than $300,000 to give them their own villa, complete with a 300-square-foot mansion. The mansion has air-conditioning and heating and a chandelier.

Dennis Quaid is a Trained Ballet Dancer

There’s a concept of “acting over ability,” wherein studios favor acting skills over how well they can do something. It can all be fixed in post or taught, right? Well, La La Land missed an opportunity with Dennis Quaid. He already knows ballet; surely jazz moves would be a piece of cake.

Image source: JimmyKimmelLive/YouTube

The actor studied ballet when he was enrolled in university. Quaid said that he had an incredible time because not only did he enjoy it, but ballet sessions were like an intense workout for him. Can we get a Black Swan remake with Quaid, please?

Britney Spears Was Once Part of a Girl Group

We’re all familiar with the tale of singers that started off as part of a group act — case in point, Beyoncé and Destiny’s Child. Yet some stars made it big without the world catching on to their previous endeavors.

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Just a few years before pop sensation Britney Spears made it big, she was belting out tunes with a girl group called Innosense. The band was together for six years, but during that time, Britney was making a name for herself as a solo act.

Oprah’s Custom Bathtub

In 2004, Oprah made headlines when she gifted a new car to every single audience member at one of her tapings of The Oprah Winfrey Show. In short, Oprah is a woman who knows how to make people happy. Naturally, she knows how to treat herself right, too.

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When Oprah needs to relax, she treats herself to only the finest things in life. Her bathtub is custom-made to perfectly fit her body, and it’s spacious enough to allow the queen of talk shows room to spread out and really unwind.

Lana Del Rey’s Real Name is Lizzy Grant

We all know that many world-famous celebs end up changing their real names. Sometimes it’s a matter of practicality, to distinguish them from others with the same names; some make the switch to match their public persona. Singers in particular follow this trend.

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With edgy and catchy stage names, their real names can be surprising. Lana Del Rey is easily one of the most successful female singers, but did you know her birth certificate says “Lizzy Grant”? Well, we can agree that she wouldn’t have the same effect on the music industry with this name.

Matthew Perry Lost a Part of His Finger

Who hasn’t seen the world-famous show Friends? The popular 1990s show catapulted many of the protagonists into stardom. Even if you missed out on the TV sensation, surely you know the memes from it. However, even die-hard fans might have missed a detail about Chandler Bing.

Image source: TBS/YouTube

Chandler’s middle finger on his right hand is shorter than average. That’s because, when Matthew Perry was around three years old, he got his finger slammed in a car door. He was injured so badly that he lost part of his finger.

Ke$ha Claims She Slept With a Ghost

We’re not here to judge anyone for their beliefs. People have had a variety of experiences that might lead them to one conclusion. Certainly, belief in ghosts isn’t uncommon, but Kesha’s claims about them are a bit out of the ordinary.

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The pop star claimed in an interview that she was once intimate with a ghost. She went on to give details about her romantic encounter with a spirit. Oddly enough, she’s not the only star to say this; Lucy Lui also claimed she had slept with a ghost.

Elvis Presley Was a Natural Blonde

Elvis Presley is known for his music and the wildly specific look. His thick jet-black hair that’s styled in an impressive way has become a fashion symbol. People go to extreme lengths to achieve the classic Elvis Presley look and dress up as him for Halloween.

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But did you know that Elvis Presley didn’t actually have dark hair? He was a natural blonde and started using black shoe polish on his hair to darken it. Presley claimed that his black hair made him look more handsome, and we don’t disagree.

Martin Luther King Paid the Hospital Bill for Julia Roberts’ Birth

Julia Roberts’ parents were close friends with Martin Luther King Jr. and his wife Coretta Scoot King. They all became friends when MLK Jr. enrolled his children at the theatre school run by Julia’s parents, Betty Lou and Walter Grady Roberts.

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The King family was grateful because they couldn’t find a school that would accept their kids. Though they didn’t ask for anything in return, MLK Jr. took the opportunity to repay them. The Roberts were unable to afford the hospital bill for Julia’s imminent birth, so MLK Jr. footed the bill.

Leighton Meester’s Mom Gave Birth to Her In Prison

When celebrities get in trouble with the law, you can bet that it’ll be plastered on the front pages of all the tabloids the next day. And you can bet that any arrests made before their big break will eventually be brought up by some desperate news junkie.

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Leighton Meester technically spent time in prison. Her mother was convicted on charges of smuggling when flying from Jamaica to the US. It was during her time in prison that little Leighton came into the world. The actress is quite vocal about her background.

Steve Buscemi Was Once a Firefighter

Though he never played a superhero, we think Steve Buscemi would make a great addition to the DCEU or MCU. He’s certainly got the acting skills, but more importantly, he was a real-life superhero. In the early 1980s, before he was an actor, Buscemi was a firefighter.

Image source: Steve Buscemi

And he proved that a hero’s work is never done. During 9/11 he came out of retirement and put on his uniform to assist the authorities. We wonder if his fellow firefighters (in the ’80s) had any idea that he was going to become a famous actor.

Miley Cyrus’ Birth Name

Another star that changed her name while trying to establish herself was Miley Cyrus. You might know her as the child pop star Hannah Montana, or from her later years and more mature (sometimes too mature) works. Do you know what her parents called her?

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Growing up, she wasn’t Hannah Montana or Miley Cyrus. 15-year-old Destiny Hope legally changed her name when she started making it big. Maybe it’s because we only know her as Miley that we can’t picture the raunchy singer as “Destiny Hope.”

Nicole Kidman is Scared of Butterflies

If something exists, there’s a chance that someone, somewhere is afraid of it. The most common phobias are those of spiders, flying, and being alone, and even if we don’t feel them, we can understand the fear. But most people probably can’t relate to Nicole Kidman’s phobia.

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She said that she’s willing to jump out of planes or try anything dangerous, but whenever she sees a butterfly, it’s game over. The actress doesn’t like how their bodies feel, and that’s why she has an extreme phobia of butterflies.

Margot Robbie Could’ve been a Trapeze Artist

Margot Robbie killed it as Harley Quinn. Do you remember when the first promos dropped, and we got a glimpse of the villainess doing some acrobatics while trapped in a cage? Well, that wasn’t just Harley being weird; Robbie was showing off her skills.

Image source: Vogue/YouTube

In another life, the actress might’ve been a trapeze performer. Robbie took proper trapeze lessons when she was 8 and would regularly attend circus school. Maybe she’ll show off some more since there’s a rumor she’ll play the role of a trapeze artist in an upcoming movie.

Leonardo DiCaprio’s Namesake

We’ve mentioned actors who changed their names, but some don’t need a stage name to be memorable. Leonardo DiCaprio isn’t exactly a common name, and even his parents knew that. In fact, his name is so special, it was inspired by a 15th-century polymath.

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According to Leo’s mom, she first felt him kicking in her womb, while she was looking at one of da Vinci’s artworks in a museum. So, if you thought there must be a connection between the two famous figures, you were right all along.

Angelina Jolie Wanted to be a Funeral Director

As kids, we were constantly asked what career we wanted to pursue. Through high school and college, “adults” couldn’t help but prod, even asking about backup career options. Angelina Jolie fulfilled her dream and became an actor, but what was her alternate career?

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The actress said that, after her grandfather passed away, she wanted to become a funeral director. Jolie said that people deal with death in different ways and she wanted to help anyone struggling with this. With an answer that wholesome, we can’t help but love her even more.

Natalie Portman Has Two Published Scientific Articles

It’s not often that actors get to portray characters that they have something in common with. Portman might not be able to wield a magical hammer, but she can relate to Jane Foster from Thor. Both women have their names on scientific papers.

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Portman attended Harvard University and graduated with a degree in psychology. During her studies, she co-authored two scientific articles, both of which were successfully published. And that’s not as easy as you think it is. Publishing papers is a huge academic accomplishment in any field.

Tom Hanks is Obsessed With Typewriters

Some people love collecting antiques and vintage things. There’s something so appealing and charming about these relics of “simpler times.” Things like rotary phones and typewriters are particularly popular, with some modern-day writers insisting on using the latter for their works.

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But one of the top collectors of typewriters isn’t a famous author; that honor goes to Tom Hanks. The actor has over 100 typewriters in his collection. According to Hanks, typing with something so old school feels incredible and can’t be compared to using laptops.

Megan Fox Believes in Leprechauns

We have talked about different celebs and their strange beliefs, but this one is the most unexpected one. Sure, many people do believe in ghosts and evil spirits, but Megan Fox believes in one creature many of us never thought to be real.

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She said that she strongly believes that Leprechauns are real because all the myths and legends must have originated from somewhere. Although she doesn’t believe in the story about the pot of gold, the existence of Leprechauns is quite real to her.

Madonna Is a Prankster

New York City is supposedly where dreams can come true, but that requires a lot of hard work and some luck. Unfortunately for those young hopefuls, auditions don’t pay the bills. That’s why you’ll hear about your favorite stars working random jobs before they landed their first role.

Image source: madonna/Instagram

Shortly after moving to The Big Apple, Madonna put on a Dunkin’ Donuts uniform. As the store quickly learned, Madonna is no different from the rest of us. She was too tempted to play with the jelly machine, which, sadly, got her fired after only one week!

Harry Styles Has Four Nipples

Some stars are comfortable with their bodies, and we respect them for that. It takes a lot of confidence to feel comfortable in your own skin, especially when you’re the talk of the town. Fans clearly couldn’t get enough pictures of Harry Styles topless, and they even noticed something odd in all of those pictures…

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Styles confirmed that the rumors are true. Due to a medical condition called polythelia, the Brit has four nipples. It’s abnormal, but by no means is it strange. The really bizarre part is that men have nipples in the first place.

Stephen Baldwin Has a Hannah Montana Tattoo

Jennifer Lawrence isn’t the only celeb with a tattoo bizarre enough to make our list. The youngest Baldwin brother got two simple letters tattooed on his arm: HM. No, he’s not a fan of the clothing store; he got the tat as a reference to Hannah Montana.

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His daughter was a huge fan of Hannah Montana, and he got a tattoo of her initials because Miley Cyrus told him he could appear as a guest star on the show. Unfortunately, this never happened, and now his tattoo is likely still there.

Rebel Wilson Became an Actress After a Hallucination

Celebs often share their stories of just how they came to be actors, models, singers, etc. After all, very few people are “born stars.” They often go through personal struggles and find inspiration to achieve the fame they now enjoy. Rebel Wilson’s story, though, is a bit abnormal.

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The star contracted malaria when she was younger, and she got so sick that she had a hallucination. But ultimately, this vision was about her being an actress. Rebel Wilson has told this story many times saying that it’s what led her to choose this path.

Ryan Gosling Was Almost in the Backstreet Boys

Unfortunately, when a musical group makes it big, sometimes it’s only one member that goes on to become a solo star. There are a lot of missed opportunities, especially with boy bands. But did you know that there’s one star whose missed opportunity was the band?

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Backstreet Boys’ frontrunner AJ McLean used to be neighbors with Ryan Gosling, and he said that the two talked about him joining the boy band. This is probably a common story for many people, which makes Gosling’s story even more incredible.

Demi Moore Loves Collecting Dolls

As cliche as it might be, almost every girl has owned at least one doll. Most of us outgrow our Barbie and American Girl dolls, but it’s not too weird to still have one sentimental one lying around. For Demi Moore, it’s a little more (get it?) than that…

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Supposedly, the actress has a collection of dolls to make any little girl jealous. Rumor has it that her collection is the biggest in the US. That is certainly more than just a hobby. What we’re really curious about is where she keeps all of them!

Jeremy Renner Used to be Makeup Artist

Next time you’re feeling jealous of your favorite actor’s immense wealth, remember this: it’s rare! Countless people try to make their mark, and only a few earn a name worth millions of dollars. That’s why struggling actors take on a variety of odd jobs — they need to make a living somehow.

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Jeremy Renner got lucky and worked a great gig before making it big as an actor. He learned how to do makeup while he worked in theater, so a job as a makeup artist was in his wheelhouse. Better yet, it only took a few hours a week, which gave him time to go to auditions.

Bruce Willis’ Job History

Since the release of the first Die Hard movie, the world has known Bruce Willis as someone not to be messed with. He made a name for himself as the perfect Hollywood action hero and has been catching bad guys on the big screen ever since.

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Well, it turns out that he was catching bad guys long before he ever landed his first movie role. Before becoming an A-list celebrity, Bruce Willis worked as both a security guard and a private investigator. Guess being a hero is in his blood.

Kim Kardashian’s Coffee Is Sleeveless

The Kardashian family is known for their unabashed displays of affluence. We already know that their luxurious lifestyle is far from normal, but even among the wealthy, they have some odd habits. For example, Kim Kardashian hires someone to take off the cardboard sleeves of her coffee cups.

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She said that she hates the texture and the feel of those cardboard sleeves. She compared it to the sound of nails on a chalkboard, so she has to pay someone to take it off for her and hand her the coffee cup.

Beyoncé Is A Literal Queen Bee

The queen of pop has inspired millions all over the world, including Bryan Lessard. Lessard isn’t your ordinary fan; he’s an entomologist. When trying to come up with a name for a previously uncatalogued horsefly, he couldn’t help but think of Beyoncé.

Image source: beyonce/Instagram

Supposedly, the golden hairs on the Scaptia beyonceae‘s abdomen reminded him of Beyoncé’s iconic look. The fly has only been collected three times, making it a rare and unique specimen. And, what’s even more fitting is the fact that all three are female. Talk about girl power!

Paul Newman Taught Jake Gyllenhaal How to Drive

Many celebrities have already had a taste of fame before they even get a chance to make their mark. Those with famous parents grew up surrounded by cameras and award-winning stars. That’s the case with actor Jake Gyllenhaal, whose parents staked their claims as a director and a screenwriter.

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So, it was usual for Gyllenhaal to be surrounded by famous celebs. To him, they weren’t top-billed stars, they were just his parents’ friends. Paul Newman was one of those close family friends, and he even gave Jake a driving lesson.

Jennifer Aniston Turned Down Being on SNL

With the success of Friends came some of our favorite actors. Although Jennifer Aniston had previously been on screen before then, her role as Rachel Green is absolutely legendary. In fact, it’s hard to think of Hollywood without the talented actress.

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Before she was a household name, Aniston was making waves in Hollywood. According to the actress, she’d expressed her desire to see more women on SNL. She wasn’t the only one who thought this, since she was later offered the job. Though she turned it down, it’s nice to know her voice was heard.

Jerry Springer Used to be the Mayor of Cincinnati

Everyone knows that Ronald Regan’s initial career wasn’t that of a politician, but rather an actor. They even made a joke about it in Back to the Future. While Regan and Schwarzenegger were actors-turned-politicians, Jerry Springer did the exact opposite.

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If you lived in Ohio in the late 1970s, you might remember Jerry Springer as the mayor of Cincinnati. Back then, he was just an ordinary Ohio man; his famous talk show didn’t air until two decades after he left his position.

Katy Perry and Her Love of Locks of Hair

When you have immense success, it seems like you have the freedom to follow any of your interests. Some celebs love collecting dinosaur bones and weird artifacts, but Katy Perry’s collection is totally unexpected. The pop star loves collecting locks of hair from her fellow celebs.

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She has clippings of Taylor Swift’s hair and Miley Cyrus, as well. Katy Perry said that likes to put tiny bows on their locks of hair and keeps her collection in her purse. This bizarre collection came to be after the Grammy’s when they all shared a dressing room.

Jon Hamm was Ellie Kemper’s Drama Teacher

It’s odd to think of top-billed actors going to school and studying drama. But even the most talented performers had to hone their skills to make it to where they are today. Usually, teachers can only look on with pride and never properly congratulate their students…

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…but Jon Hamm got to experience first-hand just how talented his former student was. Hamm only taught high school drama for one year, but Ellie Kemper was lucky enough to be in his class. Years later, the two called each other co-stars in Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. Talk about a blast from the past!

Ke$ha Collects Her Fans’ Teeth

When you have immense fame and money, you can afford to buy anything you want — and emotionally shield yourself from any backlash. Pop star Ke$ha is used to public controversy because of her unusual personality, but her collection is probably the weirdest.

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When she was going through a rough patch, Ke$ha’s fans continually showed her support, and the singer even asked them for their teeth. During her rehabilitation, she used them in her arts and crafts projects. That doesn’t sound sanitary, but so long as no one got hurt, we can’t argue, right?

Nicholas Cage Outbid Leonardo DiCaprio for a Dinosaur Skull

We all know that celebs go to extreme lengths to acquire something they want. This could mean spending millions of dollars to build up a collection or blowing it all on one particular item. Apparently, Nicolas Cage and Leonardo DiCaprio both loved Jurassic Park

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The two actors got into a bidding war over a Mongolian dinosaur skull. Cage had to pay almost $300,000 to take the skull home. Thank goodness it’s just bones; we can’t imagine the chaos that’d ensue if Jurassic World was real.

Leslie Mann is a Unicyclist

We all know that one kid who rolled into the dining hall at university on their unicycle. No matter where you went to school, there always seemed to be at least one unicyclist. Apparently, Leslie Mann claimed that title in her friend group.

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Mann shared that, when she was younger, she got a unicycle as a Christmas gift. Obviously, she used it and practiced a lot. Now, she’s so good that she can do tricks and even jump off of curbs. We’d love to see her show off her skills on the next red carpet.

Eva Mendes Wanted to be a Nun

It’s hard for us to imagine that all the famous actors we see today once lived an average life. We get a glimpse of this during interviews when they talk about their initial career plans. Many of them don’t even talk about pursuing acting; like Eva Mendes…

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Her “career” of choice was actually…a nun. She even made plans and laid out what her life would look like. It was only when she saw the (non-existent) salary nuns get that she decided to chase another dream. We’re glad she changed her mind!

Denzel Washington Has an Unusual Pinky Finger

We are so used to seeing celebs be picture-perfect that we often forget that they are also human just like us. They aren’t immune to struggles, they can suffer ups and downs, too. And while their money helps deal with these problems, things aren’t always so simple.

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The 1996 “Sexiest Man Alive” is undoubtedly good-looking, but his pinky finger wasn’t part of that evaluation. He sustained repeated injuries while playing American football. His right pinky finger was dislocated so many times, it refuses to stay put. Thankfully, he doesn’t feel pain from it.

Harrison Ford Was a Carpenter

With the magic of cinema, we often forget that our favorite stars aren’t the ones jumping out of buildings or fighting monsters. In fact, they hardly get their hands dirty. It’s rare for actors to do any of the real heavy lifting on set, but that doesn’t mean that they’re not capable.

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Before he was a scruffy-looing nerf herder, Harrison Ford was a carpenter. He taught himself the craft to support his family. According to the film legend, he was working as a carpenter when George Lucas spotted him and invited him to audition.