The world is full of weird conspiracy theories. Unfortunately, most of them stopped being fun a long time ago. Remember when we used to vibe to Art Bell on the radio? Now, many conspiracies start with Alex Jones screaming and end in a pile of messy lawsuits.
There are still fun conspiracy theories out there, though, if you know where to look. And our favorite conspiracy theories involve celebrities. Just what are the craziest conspiracy theories about celebs, and did your own favorite celeb make the list? Keep reading to find out!
Paul McCartney really did die
One of our favorite celebrity conspiracy theories involves none other than Paul McCartney. On top of that, it would be fair to say that this was the first celeb conspiracy theory to ever truly go viral.
Back in the heyday of Beatlemania, there was a persistent rumor that Paul McCartney had died in a car crash and been replaced by a lookalike musician. Despite Paul being very much alive, this rumor generated newspaper articles, news reports, and magazines. And to this day, mentioning “Paul is dead” is likely to get a few chuckles from your resident Beatles fans!
Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin never walked on the moon
At first, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin weren’t exactly celebrities. However, after they became the first humans to land on the moon, they instantly became household names.
However, from almost the very beginning, there was a conspiracy theory that America never landed on the moon and that Armstrong and Aldrin were simply filmed in a Hollywood studio (the rumor often includes that this was shot by directing legend Stanley Kubrick). At one point, someone made the mistake of telling Buzz Aldrin directly that the moon landing was fake. With no hesitation at all, Aldrin responded by punching the heckler in his face!
The Wizard of Oz hid a suicide in plain sight
The Wizard of Oz has been enjoyed by many generations of audiences. And it’s not hard to see why: this tale of Judy Garland’s Dorothy encountering a magical land and its colorful inhabitants is one of the best films ever made!
However, one conspiracy theory holds that this magical, kid-friendly movie hid an onscreen death from us in plain sight. According to the theory, you can see one of the munchkin actors committing suicide in the background along the Yellow Brick Road. This isn’t true, of course, but it is weird how much we all cheer at the violent death of the Wicked Witch!
Beyoncé faked her pregnancy
Celebrity conspiracy theories often take on a different element when a female celebrity is involved. For example, it’s common for these famous women to eventually become pregnant. But thanks to the need to get back to performing, ladies such as Beyoncé get back into perfect post-pregnancy shape before you know it.
The real reason for this is that millionaires have both immense free time and the budget for things like home gyms, personal trainers, and so on. However, there are still persistent rumors that Beyonce never got pregnant in the first place and had her child carried and birthed by surrogates. Such wild rumors are never true, but if you repeat them too much, you might just end up getting dissed on Beyoncé’s next album!
Michael Jackson is still around
One of the most enduring celebrity conspiracy theories is that deceased celebrities are secretly still alive. It all started with Elvis, of course, and “Elvis sightings” are still a mainstay of American culture. But in recent years, another musical theory has really taken the world by storm.
This theory, of course, is that Michael Jackson is still alive. Despite dying over 13 years ago, many are convinced that the King of Pop is still alive and well. Unfortunately, this theory is completely false, but we can’t fault any music lovers who wish that MJ was still around and creating the killer music he was so well-known for.
Gary Dourdan became a drug addict
As you might imagine, some of the most convincing celebrity conspiracy theories involve multimedia. All it takes is a convincing image to make a strange internet lie into a viral sensation.
Perhaps the best example of this concerns former CSI actor Gary Dourdan. Back in 2007, a man named Demitris Hirsch was arrested, and TMZ published his mugshot online and pointed out how weird it was that Hirsh looked so much like the famous actor. However, it took internet pranksters no time at all to label these as “before” and “after” photos and claim that Dourdan became a drug addict and criminal after leaving CSI!
Princess Diana was actually murdered
When Princess Diana died after a car accident, the world was shocked. One moment, “the people’s princess” was alive and well. The next, she, her driver, and her boyfriend Dodi Fayed were dead after a car crash, and only Diana’s personal bodyguard survived.
There was an extensive investigation that determined the entire thing was a tragic accident. However, there have been endless theories over the years that Diana’s death that day was a pre-planned murder. In different versions of the theory, Diana was killed by members of the paparazzi, and others think the driver planned everything (except, presumably, his own death).
In the wildest versions of this theory, it’s actually Queen Elizabeth that has royal upstart Diana murdered!