Best Celebrity Conspiracy Theories
There are several things that are collectively loved by the Internet: memes, Twitter jokes, and, of course, celebrity conspiracy theories. Social media had a field day recently when an old Avril Lavigne theory resurfaced online, quickly spawning several other odd claims — including a particularly retweetable speculation about Pikachu.
Of course, Hollywood conspiracy theories have been around for decades. Fans and sleuths alike have been prone to combing old interviews for clues, analyzing photos, and coming up with far-fetched storylines about their favorite celebs. The greatest theories don’t even have to have a single element of truth to them (as many of them do not) — sometimes, it’s just the possibility alone that makes a theory worth repeating. With that in mind, here are some of the wackiest celebrity theories of all time. Please have several grains of salt ready for consumption.
Getty1/18Anne Hathaway's husband is William Shakespeare, apparently.
Because Anne Hathaway shares a name with the wife of the William Shakespeare, people on social media have decided that maybe — just maybe — her actual husband (Adam Shulman) just might be the Bard himself, reincarnated. "Shakespeare made a deal w his wife: 'I get to be famous in this life and you get to be famous in the next,'" one person theorized. Idk, the whole thing seems a little bit of a stretch to me, but maybe I'll do a deep-dive for my next English extra credit project.
Getty Images2/18OK, now we have to talk about that Avril theory.
Legend has it that Avril died in the early 2000s and was replaced with a doppelgänger named Melissa. Fans have even gone as far as to note “differences” between the singer and her clone, like moles, freckles, and the shape of her eyes, as well as a contrast between her "old" and "new" music. Avril herself was once asked about the theory (she denied it of course), but some fans have even analyzed her body language for signs of lying. Will we ever know for sure?!
Getty Images3/18Katy Perry is actually JonBenét Ramsey.
JonBenét Ramsey continues to be the subject of conversation, as her unsolved murder has proven to be one of the most mysterious of our time. But according to some people, the former child pageant star is actually still alive — and known today as Katy Perry. The theory goes that JonBenét/Katy had actually just been in hiding from 1996 until 2008, which is when her breakout single “I Kissed a Girl” hit the airwaves. This idea first emerged in a YouTube video from 2014, and points to evidence such as physical similarities between JonBenét and Katy, as well as the two sets of parents. Of course, other people have noted that the math simply doesn’t add up, as Katy was born 6 years before JonBenét.
Getty Images4/18Taylor Swift and Tom Hiddleston never really dated.
Hiddleswift dominated celebrity gossip headlines throughout the summer of 2016, yet some skeptics doubt that their relationship was entirely genuine. In fact, these conspiracy theorists believe that their romance was actually a full-on publicity stunt for both Taylor and Tom. As evidence, people point to the fact that pictures of them are often taken in front of windows at restaurants (as though they sat there on purpose), and it has seemed as though they were sometimes reading from a script when talking about one another. Love...is it even real at all?
Getty Images5/18Nicolas Cage is an IRL vampire.
Nicolas Cage is a lot of things: an actor, the subject of a really great meme, and, according to some, he might also be a vampire. The legend was born when a photo surfaced on eBay of a man from the 1800s...and it looks an awful lot like Nicolas Cage. Could it be that he’s been alive for centuries, and will continue living after all of us have died? Maybe. But Nicolas himself once threw a pretty solid wrench in this theory: he pointed out the fact that you can’t take photographs of vampires. Hmm. Sounds like something a ~vampire~ would say, if you ask me.
Getty Images6/18Justin Bieber is a lizard. Yes, you read that right — a lizard.
And not just a lizard, but a shapeshifting lizard at that. It all started when Perth Now reportedly published — and then deleted — an article with the headline “Hundreds of Fans Claim They Saw Justin Bieber Turn Into Giant Reptile.” Another site quickly jumped on the bandwagon, offering “quotes” from eyewitnesses like, “He was hanging around with this big guy, his bodyguard I guess, and we were just staring because he kept turning into a huge reptile. His bodyguard was pointing at us, shouting that he’d kick our teeth in if we didn’t put our phones away.” I mean, we know that Justin Bieber is sometimes sensitive about getting his picture taken, but this seems a little extreme. Nevertheless, the “Justin is a reptile” theories have continued to pop up online.
Getty Images7/18Khloé Kardashian isn’t a real Kardashian.
It’s fair to say that the Kardashian-Jenner family tree is confusing on its own, but some people have elected to make it even more complicated by alleging that Khloé Kardashian is actually the daughter of OJ Simpson. The theory has been lingering for years, and was even subtweeted by Amber Rose back in 2015 during a particularly dramatic Twitter feud. Khloé herself has even poked fun at the conspiracy, saying “Some days I’m OJ’s daughter. Others I’m Robert’s daughter.” At least she takes the gossip in stride, right?
Getty Images8/18The infamous Kanye/Taylor feud is — and has always been — completely staged.
Taylor Swift can’t seem to escape rumors about publicity stunts. In addition to the theories that her entire romance with Tom Hiddleston was for the paparazzi, there are some people who believe that her eight-year beef with Kanye West was also completely contrived. Oh, and that Taylor, Kanye, and Kim Kardashian are all part of the illuminati. Naturally. It’s definitely more than a little mind-blowing to think that those celebs could have put that much effort into fooling the public, but hey, stranger things have happened. Like vampires and lizards, I guess.
Getty Images9/18Marilyn Monroe was murdered.
This is an oldie but a goodie. The death of Hollywood legend Marilyn Monroe is one of history’s greatest mysteries, as there’s still a lot that’s unknown about her passing. While authorities determined that she likely died by suicide, there are many people who think that she might have been murdered instead. The reasons for the possible murder range from her alleged involvement with the Kennedys to the fact that she “knew” that UFOs exist (seriously). But there’s one thing we can agree on: Marilyn definitely left a lasting impact on our culture.
Getty Images10/18Pikachu died and was replaced by a lookalike.
Avril Lavigne isn't the only one rumored to be played by a lookalike...some Pokémon fans think that Pikachu isn't who you think, and that the proof is in everything from the theme song lyrics to inconsistencies in the animation between seasons and movies.
11/18Zac Efron is Dacre Montgomery's son in the Stranger Things world.
When season 2 of Stranger Things aired on Netflix, fans noticed that newcomer Dacre Montgomery had a striking resemblance to Zac Efron, so much so that they began to posit that he is actually his father in the Stranger Things universe. That would suggest that Zac could make an appearance in a later season...but only time will tell.
Photo: Big Machine Records12/18Taylor Swift's "Taylor can't come to the phone right now" line is a secret message.
When Taylor Swift dropped "Look What You Made Me Do," one of the many fan theories surrounding the video was that the now-iconic line in which she says: "Sorry, the old Taylor can't come to the phone right now. Why? Because she's dead" is actually to be taken literally and is Taylor telling fans she's been replaced by a body-double.
©Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection13/18Anna and Elsa's little brother is Tarzan.
There's a fan theory that Anna and Elsa’s parents — the King and Queen of Arendelle — didn't die at sea, rather, they landed on shore in a jungle, gave birth to a baby boy, got eaten by a leopard...and their son would be come to known as Tarzan. So yes, Tarzan is the little brother of Anna and Elsa, a concept that the movie's execs have actually said is true.
14/1813 Reasons Why and Grey's Anatomy are connected.
This theory comes from the fact that Kate Walsh, who plays Hannah's mother in 13 Reasons Why was also a doctor at Seattle Grace, where Dylan Minnette played a kid who came in for help with his hearing. Fans think the link is that because Kate (playing Dr. Addison Montgomery) gave the child his hearing back, and it was with that he was able to listen to Hannah's tapes.
15/18Louis Tomlinson's baby was never born.
Some fans posited that Louis Tomlinson's baby was never really born and that he and Briana Jugwirth had been grifting photos of other people's kids for their Instagram pages. Briana spoke out confirming that the rumors were, of course, very untrue.
Michael Reynolds/Getty Images16/18Ted Cruz is the zodiac killer.
In October of 2017, Ted Cruz made a dumb (and unfunny) "joke" about being the zodiac killer, which of course, conspiracy theorists ran with quickly and have since been trying to gather "evidence" to prove.
17/18Cole Sprouse and Lili Reinhart knew each other as kids.
Cole uploaded to his Instagram story of himself, his brother Dylan, and a mystery girl when they were just kids, and he tagged Lili Reinhart because the child looked so much like her. However, it was quickly discovered that the person in the photo wasn't Lili, it was a fan named Anna Laura who got a photo with the twins many, many years ago.
