171 Bizarre Phobias of Famous People

We Have Compiled a Super List of Famous People and Their Fears/Phobias, Some are Strange and Some are Common Fears we all have.

Everyone is afraid of something, however, there are some really strange and weird phobias that many of us cannot even imagine being afraid of at all. We have scoured the internet and publications for famous people with some of the most bizarre fears and listed them here.

Some of the phobias such as fear of flying or fear of snakes are shared among some very famous individuals, but then you will find a fear of pork or getting pregnant by an alien and you stop in your tracks and wonder where this fear originated. Do you happen to share a fear with someone famous? Check out the list below and see. Lets Go!

 

Adele-Famous Singer

• Seagulls
• Stage Fright

Alexander The Great

• Cats

Augustus Caesar

•The Dark – needed people around and awake during the night
• Storms (mainly thunder and lightning) – saw a slave struck and killed by lightning only a few feet in front of him

Alice Cooper-Singer

•Needles – becomes faint if he has to get a blood test

Aretha Franklin-The Queen of Soul

•Flying

Alfred Hitchcock

•Chicken eggs – The egg yolk he explained would breathe and spill yellow liquid
• Sex
Heights
• Authority
• Being arrested and placed in jail

Adolf Hitler

•Dentists – So fearful it took 8 trips to the dentist to finish a root canal treatment
• Cats
Blades – would not allow a barber to shave him – if a barber came close he would scream

Alex Pettyfer-Actor

• Flying
Ceiling fans

Andy Roddick-Tennis Pro

• Rabbits – had to run out of a Texas hotel due to the Easter display that had several bunny mascots

Bobby Brown-Pop Star

Dogs

Brandon Flowers-Musicians

• Fear of the number 621 – His birthday
• Flying

Bela Lugosi-Actor Dracula

• Blood

Britney Spears-Singer

Snakes
• Large reptiles

Barbra Streisand

• Stage fright

Billy Bob Thornton-Actor

• Antique furniture – he is very anxious if he is in a room with furniture that is dated back before 1850
• Bright colors
Clowns
Live theater
• British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli’s hair – he knows there are mites and dust there
• Komodo dragons

Cheryl Cole-Singer Dancer

•Cotton – cannot touch it without having anxiety
•Wool

Chris Cornell-Musician

•Flying

Charles Darwin-Theory of Evolution

•Agoraphobia – only going outside with wife or others
Crowds
• Anxiety

Cameron Diaz-Actress

• Germs – she cleaned her doorknobs in her home so much that the paint was removed

Carmen Elektra-Actress

• Water

Chris Hemsworth-Actor

• Being boring – he is afraid the media and his fans will think he is boring

Christine McVie-Musician

•Flying

Christina Ricci-Actress

•Being alone in a pool
Sharks
• Indoor plants

Channing Tatum-Actor

• Porcelain dolls

David Beckham-Soccer Star

• Disorder – Items must be color-coded and his clothing must match his furniture
Frogs
Birds – afraid he will be in a public place and be attacked by birds mainly pigeons

David Bowie-Singer Performer

• Flying
• A wizard stealing his urine – during a time he suffered from emotional problems and drug addiction

Dave Davies-The Kinks

Clowns

Dave Grohl-Musician Foo Fighters

• Small spaces
•Private planes
• Getting stuck in an elevator – had a panic attack stuck on the 38th floor in an elevator

Danielle Jonas-Reality TV

Balloons – She feels like the movement of balloons is out of control

Donnie Osmond-Singer

• Shopping malls

Daniel Radcliffe-Actor

• Clowns
• Losing his movie career
• Yellowstone volcano – it could go off anytime
• Being mobbed by fans – will not use the London Underground

David Lee Roth-Singer

• Flying

Donald Trump

• Germs – shaking hands makes him anxious
Falling down stairs/slopes

Eminem-Rapper

• Giraffes – their long necks freak him out
Owls

Eva Mendes-Actress

• Water

Edvard Munch-Painter “The Scream”

• Agoraphobia – afraid to go outside alone

Elliot Page-Actor

Tennis balls – must leave the room if tennis comes on the television

Elvis Presley

• Flying

Eric Prydz-Record Producer

• Flying

Frederic Chopin-Composer

• Buried alive – wanted his heart removed at the time of death so he would not be buried alive

Freddie Mercury-Singer

Spiders

Gustave Eiffel

•Heights

Genghis Khan

•Dogs – during his attacks on villages, he would tell his men to kill all dogs and cats
• Cats

Gene Simmons-Musician

•Flying

Hans Christian Anderson-Composer

• Being buried alive – he created a bell that could be placed in a coffin to ring if the person was alive
Dogs
Pork – refused to eat due to being afraid of being poisoned
• Fire

Honore de Balzac- French Novelist

Sun
• Daylight

Hilary Duff-Actess Singer

Dirt – cleans her room every night to ensure there is no dirt

Heraclius

• Water

Howie Mandel-Actor Comedian

• Germs – will not shake hands
• Dirt

Harry Styles-Singer

• The dark – uses a night light
• Dentists

Isadora Duncan-Dancer

•Cats

Julius Caesar

•Cats
• Fire

Johnny Cash

• Fear of flying
• Fear of snakes

Johnny Depp-Actor

Spiders
• Clowns

Joe Elliot-Singer Def Leppard

• Thanking the wrong city on stage

James Hetfield-Musician

• Responsibility
Failure
• Turning 50

Jennifer Love Hewitt-Actress

• Lifts
Sharks
• Her health
Bones – will not eat chicken legs as her teeth might touch a bone
• The dark
Monsters – worried there are monsters hiding under her bed
• Elevators
Enclosed spaces
• Being trapped with no way to escape

John Lennon

• His legacy – how he would be remembered

John Madden

• Flying – more claustrophobic than actually the fear of flying

Jerry Seinfeld

• Germs

Jessica Simpson-Singer

Slippery teeth – she only brushes 3 times each week
• Dolphins

Justin Timberlake-Actor Singer

• Spiders
Snakes
• Sharks
• Dying unloved
• His mother

Kim Basinger-Actress

• Public spaces – shopping malls bring on anxiety
• Open spaces

Kristen Bell-Actress

• Pruney fingers – wears gloves in the pool so she does not have to feel pruney fingers

King Henry VIII of England

• Germs – would not sleep in the same bed two nights in a row

Katie Holmes-Actress

•Raccoons – while sitting outdoors a raccoon came up to her and stared at her and did not move – she stood up and barked at it to scare it away

Kendall Jenner-Personality

• Holes – she is afraid of what might be in the small holes in a pancake

Kylie Jenner-Personality

• Dust in a cup
Butterflies

Kim Jong-II

• Flying – no matter the distance he would only travel by train or vehicles

Khloé Kardashian-TV Personality

Belly Buttons – She is even afraid of her own belly button and must use a mitten to wash it while screaming

Kelly Osbourne-Singer TV Personality

• Being touched
• Hearing others making sounds with their mouth like chewing and slurping

Katy Perry-Singer

• The dark – she believes evil lurks in the darkness

Kyra Sedgwick-Actress

• Talking food – food talking on commercials make her leave the room like the California Raisins

Kayne West-Rapper

• Spiders – Kim has to get rid of them

Lance Bass-Singer Backstreet Boys

• Items that buzz

LaToya Jackson-Singer

• Cats

Louis XIV

• Cats

Lyle Lovett-Country Singer

• Cows

Liam Payne-Singer

• Spoons

Muhammad Ali- The “Greatest”

• Flying – brought his own parachute on flights

Matt Bellamy-Musician

• Getting impregnated by an alien and giving birth
World Apocalypse

Matt Damon-Actor

• Snakes – Scarlett Johansson said he cried when they brought out snakes during a scene of We Bought a Zoo

Megan Fox-Actress

• The dark – she is afraid of what she can’t see
• Dry paper – she cannot read a script without having a cup of water to dip her fingers in to turn pages
• Flying
• Germs

Martin Freeman-Actor

• Choking – when he cuts an avocado and sees the seed he envisions the seed getting lodged in his windpipe

Michael Jackson

• Germs – chose to wear a mask at all times when not at home
• Dogs
• Flying

Marilyn Manson-Musician

• Sleeping naked – has a dream will wake up in front of the police
Afraid the house will catch fire – during sex, lights must be on and underwear at his ankles

Marilyn Monroe

• Disappointing those she loved
• Losing her mind
• Stage fright

Marcel Proust-French Novialist

• Agoraphobia – had cork walls to keep out sounds and thick curtains that stayed shut

Meryl Streep-Actress

•Helicopters

Nikolai Gogol- Russian Novelist

• Being buried alive

Nick Jonas-Singer

Flying – he does take planes but feels like defying gravity is terrifying

Nicole Kidman-Actress

Butterflies – as a child, a butterfly or large moth was on the gate to her home, she would climb over the fence instead of going near the gate
• The sudden death of family or friends

Nicki Minaj-Pop Star

Escalators – In 2011, she refused to use a moving staircase that was part of the red carpet

Napoleon III

Cats – would get on furniture and stay until someone removed the feline

Nikki Sixx-Musician

• Snakes

Nikola Tesla-Inventor

• Germs – would not shake hands
• Jewelry

Natalie Wood-Actree

• Water

Orlando Bloom-Actor

• Pigs

Ozzy Osbourne-Singer

Rats

Oprah Winfrey

• Balloons
• Chewing gum – her grandmother would save chewed gum and stick it places which brought on the fear. No one is allowed to chew gum on her set.

Pamela Anderson-Actress

Mirrors
• Can’t watch herself on television – she turns the television or she leaves the room

Paul Cezanne-Painter

• Fear of being touched

P Diddy-Pop Star Producer

• Clowns – asked for a no clown clause to be placed in his contract for Fear Factor and since the producers would not add the clause, he chose to forget the gig
• Long second toes

Pablo Picasso

• Getting a haircut

Pythagoras

•Beans – even though he was a vegetarian he would not touch or eat beans and forbid his followers from doing so

Paul Stanley-Singer KISS

• Bullying
• Being ostracized

President George Washington

• Being buried alive – ordered that his body was to lay untouched for 2 days after his death to ensure he was dead

Robert De Niro-Actor

• Dentists – believes dental equipment carries disease

Ranbir Kapoor-Indian Actor

• Spiders

Roger Moore-Actor

• Heights
• Water
Guns

Richard Nixon

Hospitals – so afraid that if he were admitted he would never be released

Robert Pattinson-Actor

• The dark – must have a light on to go to sleep
• Driving
• Clowns
• Getting stabbed
• Fame
• Horses
• Getting shot
• Dating
• Death threats
• Buying a house
• HIV – people want him to bite them and he is afraid they might have a needle and stab him

Russian Tsar Peter the Great

•Insects – servants had to check rooms for bugs before he would enter
• Agoraphobia – preferred staying indoors
• Crossing bridges

Rihanna-Singer Actress

Fish – had a panic attack when in water and small fish were swimming around her feet

Ringo Starr

• Germs – would bump elbows instead of shaking hands
• Stage fright

Sheryl Crow-Musician

• Heights

Salvador Dali-Painter

•Grasshoppers – The fear came from childhood when bullies would throw these insects at him
• Ekbom’s Syndrome – a condition that caused him to feel and even see bugs crawling on his body

Snoop Dog-Rapper

• Water

Shannon Elizabeth-Actress

• Chickens

Sigmund Freud- Psychiatrist

• Guns
• Ferns
• Traveling by train

Sarah Michelle Gellar-Actress

•Cemeteries – when shooting Buffy the Vampire in a cemetery she would break down crying
• Being buried alive

Scarlett Johansson-Actress

• Cockroaches
• Birds

Sonam Kapoor-Indian Actress

• Elevators
• Heights

Stephen King

• Writer’s block
• Angry spirits
• Evil cars
• Larger than life rats

Sarah Paulson-Actress

• Clowns
• Heights
• Holes
Bees

Slash-Musician

• Hand injuries – will not put his hand outside of a car window while riding

Steven Spielberg-Director

• Furniture that has feet
• Cats
• Insects

Tyra Banks-Model

• Dolphins

Travis Barker-Drummer

• Flying – after a plane crash that killed his assistant and bodyguard

Tom Cruise

• Going bald

Tony Curtis-Actor

• Flying – tried hypnosis to cure his fear

Thomas Edison

• The dark

Tyrese Gibson-Actor

• Owls – will not even watch Harry Potter as there is an owl in the movie

Thomas Jefferson

• Social anxiety
• Public speaking – would say he was ill when invited to give a speech
• Talking about himself – even in his own autobiography, he was worried he was talking about himself too much

Timothy Leary-60’s Icon

• Barbers

Tennessee Williams-Writter

• Serious illness

Thom Yorke-Musician

• Cars
• Loneliness – due to being bullied as a child
• Flying
Technology

Uma Thurman-Actress

• Confined spaces

Woody Allen-Actor Director

• Heights (acrophobia)
Sharp objects (aichmphobia)
• Aliens
• Fear of a place that was not Manhattan
• Peanut butter – that would stick to the roof of his mouth
• Spiders

Walt Disney

• Mice

William Shakespeare

• Burial and exhumation – inscribed on his gravestone “Good friend for Jesus sake forbeare, To dig the dust enclosed here. Blessed be the man that spares these stones, And cursed be he that moves my bones
• Dogs

Will Smith-Actor Singer

• Water

Zach Galifianakis-Actor

• Heights

As you can see, there are all kinds of fears and phobias. Some phobias may be shared by others while others may only be found with one person. Fears and phobias both are often developed during childhood. Everyone has fears, however, if the fear is stopping a person from handling day to day activities, then the fear may have turned into a phobia. A fear of water, may not actually be a fear as the person may only be afraid because they do not know how to swim.

Did you find a fear that you have? Do you have a phobia? Many of the phobias can be conquered with the right therapies. This does not mean every person with a phobia will get completely over their fear, but they will learn how to manage the fear without running in terror.

Can you imagine, going out on stage when you have stage fright? Some of the famous people above are doing just that. They are conquering their fears and doing a great job. Look at Uma Thurman. She is terrified of confined spaces, however, she was placed in a coffin and dirt thrown on her for a scene in Kill Bill. Now, that took more than guts!

Notice:

“Famous People with Unique Fears and Phobias” is presented for illustrative purposes only. It is not intended to abase or demean any individual listed.
The material presented is sourced through public outlets and is public knowledge.
The information is offered in support of those suffering with similar fears and phobias.
The knowledge that one is not alone in their fear may help them overcome these struggles, and promote a happier, more productive life.