History Main / CelebrityIsOverrated

* Music/EltonJohn is an interesting case. As reflected in an example above, he was an emotionally suppressed boy with an [[WellDoneSonGuy emotionally distant, strict father]] and a doting mother. The two parents divorced, but the effects of such a childhood scarred him for life. He was encouraged to only wear conservative clothing and be a banker and was discouraged from pursuing a career in rock and roll. Elton was shy, overweight, gap-toothed, played the relatively unhip instrument of piano, wore glasses (he didn't need them at first, but he idolized Music/BuddyHolly and wanted to wear glasses like Buddy, to the point that it damaged his vision) and was [[AmbiguouslyGay struggling with his homosexuality]]. Because of this, when he took on the "Elton" persona, he wore increasingly [[ImpossiblyCoolClothes flamboyant clothing]] and [[MakingASpectacleOfYourself glasses]] and acted outrageously, [[FreudianExcuse partly as a riposte to what his dad wanted him to be]], and to hide his insecurities. He took [[SexDrugsAndRockAndRoll cocaine, marijuana and alcohol]] to feel a part of the scene and open up, and because it felt good to him at first; they also fueled his sex drive. Later, the drugs, alcohol, depression, promiscuity, and bulimia caught up with him and nearly killed him. He enjoyed the celebrity, but could not cope with life away from celebrity, and often his being busy with albums and touring would, by WordOfGod, keep him from overdosing in his room alone and dying young. He cleaned up by the end of TheEighties and got his life back on track. He still, however, is very self-conscious about his looks [[WordOfGod and claims]] he hates having his picture taken and hates to make music videos, which might explain why by the beginning of TheOughties, he stopped appearing in them (or appears in a limited amount).

* This trope was one of the primary reasons for Creator/LindsayEllis' retirement in 2021, claiming that her longtime career as a content creator and the fame it brought her wasn't worth all the harassment she had to endure.

* [[UsefulNotes/TheBritishRoyalFamily Prince Harry]] has never hidden his hatred of the paparazzi that has hounded him all of his life, blaming them--not unjustifiably--for his mother's death, a hatred that ramped up even more when their harassment if his wife made her suicidal, resulting in them leaving the royal life for a much quieter and private one thousands of miles away in California.

* The ''Literature/{{Goosebumps}}'' book ''How I Learned to Fly'' is based around this, making it seem really out-of-place in a series dedicated to supernatural horrors. This is best seen in the end, when [[spoiler: the hero pretends to lose his powers to live a happy life with his {{Love Interest|s}}, while his rival leads a miserable and empty life being famous]].

** And when others students started to be the target of gossip for similar reasons (their relatives being killed by Death Eaters), one of them lampshaded to Harry how horrible she find the whole thing.

* Many celebrities state that this is TruthInTelevision and is often the cause of, or a major contributing factor in, a lot of the self-destructive behavior some exhibit.

* "Lonely" by Music/JustinBieber is a short, somber song about how Bieber became '''very''' famous while he was still a [[Main/ChildPopstar teenager]]. Jacob Tremblay plays a teenaged Bieber in the music video.

* When ''Series/{{Weinerville}}'' got a magic lamp, Dottie [[BeCarefulWhatYouWishFor wished to be]] [[WhatAnIdiot the most famous person in the world]]. Never even learned what she was famous for.

** "Stinky Goes Hollywood": Stinky has been selected to do a commercial campaign for Yahoo Soda. After filming several ads, Stinky's family and friends want him to sign a $1m commercial contract, but Stinky has found out that why he was picked ([[ExactEavesdropping having overheard an executive mocking his name]]), and, presumably fearing that the commercials will be mocking his hayseed image (and other personal inferiorities), decides that his pride is more important… and ends up being mocked as [[WhatAnIdiot/WesternAnimation an idiot]] by Helga for not signing.

* Music/{{Eminem}}: The songs "The Way I Am" and "Don't Approach Me" (with Xzibit) are about the downsides to newfound wealth and fame. In fact, "Don't Approach Me" was less a song and basically the two artists ranting about their frustrations: stalkers, babymamadrama, greedy friends, etc.

* Creator/AlanAlda said, "It isn't necessary to be rich and famous to be happy. It's only necessary to be rich."

* Creator/NatalieWood once said "Stardom is only a by-product of acting. I don't think being a movie star is a good enough reason for existing." and "There are certain stars who are not actors. I don't want to be that type."

* CreatorNatalieWood once said "Stardom is only a by-product of acting. I don't think being a movie star is a good enough reason for existing." and "There are certain stars who are not actors. I don't want to be that type."

* Played straight throughout the run of ''Series/{{Friends}}'' where Joey, an aspiring actor, absolutely basks in his celebrity status when he is successful.

So, supposedly, it's refreshing when a character does give up the pursuit of fame and riches for (say) family or friends, even if they disagree with their choice to snub. (Even though, in TV, we ''expect'' the ResetButton.) Or it's just because fame only brings you even bigger problems, like getting caught in a NeverLiveItDown.

* Creator/MaraWilson was a [[FormerChildStar burgeoning child talent]] in TheNineties in movies like ''Film/MrsDoubtfire'', the 1994 remake of ''Film/MiracleOnThirtyFourthStreet'' and the title role in ''Film/{{Matilda}}'', but during the making of ''Matilda'' her mother tragically died of breast cancer. Having already decided she didn't want to act for a living, her career slowed down with critical and commercial flops like ''Film/ASimpleWish'' and ''[[WesternAnimation/ThomasTheTankEngine Thomas And The Magic Railroad]]''. She was typecast in "cutesy" roles while hoping for more substantial opportunities, she felt awkward as she grew up, and, as she later mentioned, she came to the conclusion that "film acting (wasn't) very fun". She left show business after ''Thomas'', went to a number of colleges in her new hometown of UsefulNotes/NewYorkCity, and now works as a playwright, runs [[http://www.marawilsonwritesstuff.com a popular blog online]] and volunteers for Publicolor, a not-for-profit organization that creates imaginative and colorful paint jobs for inner-city schools. When she does work in the public eye, it's in low-key independent productions (for example, she is the voice of The Faceless Old Woman Who Lives In Your House in ''PodCast/WelcomeToNightVale'' ) or writing for online platforms like Cracked.com.

* As per canon, Harry in ''FanFic/ChildOfTheStorm'' hates being bowed to and worshipped. It gets even worse when TheReveal comes that he's the son of Thor and therefore in line for the throne of Asgard. Eventually, [[CharacterDevelopment he becomes more assertive and less uncomfortable with it]] (or at least, willing to put up with it), though he still remains a HumbleHero and NiceToTheWaiter (in between [[ShellShockedVeteran the PTSD]], anyway) who would rather people not make a big fuss over him.
** [[TheGadfly Fred and George Weasley]], naturally, play it for laughs by bowing, scraping, and loudly asking "What is thy bidding, my master?"
* In ''Fanfic/CodexEquus'', this happened to Blue Suede Heartstrings, the Alicorn god of Music and Humility, in his mortal life. He would experience this as a mortal in some point of his life. Losing both of his parents (first his mother, then his father), witnessing the hubris and corruption within the music/movie industries, and having his music be "cheapened" for money left him rather depressed to the point where he developed self-destructive habits, such as [[BigEater stress-eating]]. By the time he recorded the song "[[Music/ElvisPresley (You're the) Devil in Disguise]]", he had hit an all-time low and planned to disappear from the limelight forever, when he met an incognito [[BigGood Luminiferous]]. The pep-talk he received from Luminiferous motivated him to take up globe-trotting and performing on his own terms after he quit his job as a career musician, leading to him eventually becoming an Alicorn god through his good deeds.

* ''[[https://mcheang.tumblr.com/post/646697149241982976/dangerous-fan-club Dangerous Fan Club]]'' reveals that Marinette used to be Cheng Hua, arguably China's most famous child actress who starred in many popular movies and tv shows. She eventually retired of her own free will and moved to Paris where no one would recognize her because her fame (and LoonyFan club) made it impossible to have have a normal life.

* ''[[https://mcheang.tumblr.com/post/646697149241982976/dangerous-fan-club Dangerous Fan Club]]'' reveals that Marinette used to be Cheng Hua, arguably China's most famous actress who starred in many popular movies and tv shows. She eventually retired of her own free will and moved to Paris where no one would recognize her because her fame (and LoonyFan club) made it impossible to have have a normal life.

-->'''Sharon:''' My Mom was right, money can't buy happiness. I mean even with all those perks, [[RealityEnsues Leena still seemed totally miserable]]. To me, it looked like all she wanted were the things that had been taken away from her, family, her freedom, and the chance to be herself, things I've already got.