Jamie Foxx joins Christian Bale and Bette Davis as he allegedly has meltdown on Cameron Diaz movie set

Cameron Diaz must be thinking if she made the right decision to come back to the film industry after an extended period away. Reports have emerged that Academy Award winner Jamie Foxx had an on-set meltdown during the filming of their new movie, Back In Action, leading to the mass firing of the executive producer, assistant director, unit director and even Foxx’s driver.

A source for the film, currently being shot in London, told The S*n “There have been some issues on set and Jamie has had a major meltdown over it all. He demanded the problems be sorted immediately and sacked four of the production staff – as if that would magically improve the situation. Some people working on it are totally fed up with how this has played out and Jamie has become pretty unpopular”

Perhaps much like Tom Cruise’s incident on the set of Mission Impossible 7 (see below), the pressure of Foxx in an executive producer role might be getting to much for him, especially given the lengths he went to get Diaz out of her retirement for the film, which also features Severance actor Adam Scott.

Foxx had revealed in the early stages of production a phone call between Diaz and himself to coax her to pick up her first movie in nine years, and her third film with the Ray actor. Cameron could be heard saying: "Jamie Foxx, only you could get me back in action. I can’t frickin’ wait it’s gonna be a blast!"

We’re curious at Peopleworld if those sentiments have aged like fine wine or, after this alleged blow up, like spoiled milk. But let’s not forget, even some of the most celebrated performers have had their moments of madness on film sets throughout the history of cinema.

Bette Davis - Whatever Happened to Baby Jane? 

One of the original beefs in Hollywood, to the point that on set no one knew what could happen between actresses Bette Davis and Joan Crawford. Such was the animosity between the two, palpable while watching the 1962 film, that at one stage they came to blows.

Well - maybe not the pair of them. It would actually be Bette Davis who instigated the on-set drama, when she hit her co-star full force in the head after an escalation of antagonism between the pair throughout production.

Joan Crawford bided her time to plot her revenge though - she negotiated collecting a Best Actress Oscar on behalf of the winner, Anne Bancroft. Who was Bancroft up against in the category? None other than her assailant, Bette Davis.

Christian Bale - Terminator: Salvation

One of the more well known recent meltdowns involved the passionate Christian Bale on the set of Terminator: Salvation. For insurance purposes, audio was kept regarding an outburst Bale had with the film’s director of photography who, unbeknown to himself, threw off the Academy Award winner’s momentum off in a crucial scene.

In the now well documented argument, Bale swore at the technician, called him unprofessional and hurled a number of insults during his exasperation being taken out of the scene - Bale is well known for plumbing the depths of his emotions for his roles.

To his credit, Christian Bale gave a heartfelt apology explaining he was out of line for the way he reacted, and that he was caught in the emotions of that particular scene that led him to “flip-out” at the crew member. Speaking to KROQ on February 6 2009, he explained “I was out of order beyond belief. I make no excuses for it."

"There is nobody who has heard that tape who has been hit harder than me. The one thing that disturbs me so much is that I’ve heard a lot of people saying that I seem to think that I’m better than anybody else.

"Nothing could be farther from the truth. I am a lucky man, I never forget that and that is why I put so much into what I do, and why I care so much about it and why sometimes that enthusiasm just goes awry."

David O Russell - I Heart Huckabees

The first of two entries for the enigmatic director and one that later was lampooned by Arrested Development and Superbad actor Michael Cera. David O Russell’s filmmaking style can be described by some as “passionate” and by others “obnoxious.”

It was I Heart Huckabees actress Lily Tomlin who experienced the full wrath of Russell in 2007, as the director lost his temper filming one particular scene and launched into a vulgar tirade against the actress - twice. Lily Tomlin cleared up the meltdown in an interview with Movieline in 2011, defending the director stating that “David is a very mercurial person, and that’s part of why he’s so brilliant.”

He almost reflects the movie. I did two movies with him, and I Heart Huckabees was so crazy, so all over the place, I think he kind of embodies intuitively whatever he’s trying to make happen. It was just crazy, crazy stuff. We were always doing something, and then we’d get manic and crazy and I just flipped out on him. Then he flipped out on me. And you know, stuff goes on. But it’s nothing. It’s like family [...] I love him. He’s brilliant."

George Clooney - Three Kings

Years earlier, David O Russell’s temperament was documented on the set of action-comedy Three Kings, starring Mark Wahlberg, Ice Cube and George Clooney. It was Clooney on this occasion that got into an altercation with the director as Russell was exceptionally despotic with some of the lower-level members on set.

That prompted Good Guy Clooney to step in, telling the director “David, it’s a big day. But you can’t shove, push or humiliate people who aren’t allowed to defend themselves.” That led to Russell allegedly headbutting the former ER star, who grabbed Russell by the throat in response. Clooney said Russell eventually apologised and filming continued, but Clooney described the incident as "truly, without exception, the worst experience of my life."

When asked if he would work with Russell again, Clooney responded, "life’s too short," though he softened his stance years later, telling The Hollywood Reporter in 2012 “We made a really, really great film, and we had a really rough time together, but it’s a case of both of us getting older. I really do appreciate the work he continues to do, and I think he appreciates what I’m trying to do."

Tom Cruise - Mission Impossible 7

Sometimes however, an on-set meltdown can be justified; take for example the case of Tom Cruise losing his cool on the set of Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part I in December 2020. This was during the height of the Coronavirus pandemic, with lockdowns in store and the film already shut down once for safety reasons.

When Tom Cruise, a producer on the film alongside starring in the franchise, discovered that some crew members were playing fast and loose with Covid-19 protocol, he launched into a scathing rant - “I don’t ever want to see it again, ever! And if you don’t do it, you’re fired! If I see you do it again, you’re f***ing gone. And anyone on this crew does it, that’s it! And you, too. And you, too. And you. If you ever do it again, that’s it."

Cruise continued, explaining the reason why he was so irate with the protocol breach: “No apologies. You can tell it to the people who are losing their f***ing homes because our industry is shut down. It’s not gonna put food on their table, or pay for their college education. That’s what I sleep with every night. The future of this f***ing industry!! So, I’m sorry, but I am beyond your apologies. I have told you and now I want it and if you don’t do it, you’re out!"