Hollywood's Most Down-To-Earth Celebrities

Celebrities are just like us — or are they? The short answer is: it all depends. While people like Kanye West and Gwyneth Paltrow are known for their larger-than-life egos and are — let's be honest here — completely out of touch with reality, other big stars have managed to attain fame without getting a big head about it. Sure, they may live in multimillion dollar mansions and require around-the-clock security, but somehow they haven't become completely detached. Yes, for every Christina Aguilera who thinks her music failed to resonate with people because it was "ahead of its time" and every Alec Baldwin who complains about protests supporting higher minimum wage blocking his commute, there are the Tom Hankses of the world who prove that becoming famous doesn't automatically mean you have to turn into a jerk. 

Need proof? Here are a few examples of the most normal, genuinely nice, and down-to-earth celebs in Hollywood.

Okay, we know this isn't surprising, but how could we exclude the Tom Hanks, really? In addition to probably being the only person who could play Mr. Rogers other than, well, Mr. Rogers, Hanks has proved time and time again that he enjoys being a "regular" person. 

As Mashable reported in 2015, the actor even spends some time browsing and commenting on Reddit threads without ever really saying, "Hey, look! I'm Tom Hanks." In the past, he has answered questions about the best luxury items under $150 that one could purchase ("A typewriter in good working order") and even what to do if you start coming down with an illness ("Cancel tomorrow. Get in bed. Sleep at least ten hours."). 

Hanks' wife and fellow actor, Rita Wilson, also revealed some details about the couple's grounded life when speaking to Us Weekly about their holiday traditions. "We don't have a [Christmas] tree that looks like it was designed by somebody," she said. "We have plastic reindeer, you know, beaded things."

Speaking to a committee at the state assembly in Sacramento, Calif., actress Jennifer Garner once said, as reported by The Guardian, "I chose a public life and understand that this means sacrifices in terms of privacy for our jobs. In my case this means that I am sometimes photographed." In an effort to get a law passed that would protect celebrities' children from being accosted by paparazzi, Garner continued, "However my three children are private citizens and more than that — at one, four and seven-years-old — they're just little kids." 

Despite Garner's concerns about the paparazzi, you'll never see her smashing any cameras or anything of the like. Even while at ex-husband Ben Affleck's house to reportedly stage an intervention, according to AOL, Garner approached photographers and kindly asked for some space. "Thank you. I really appreciate it," she can be heard saying (via Metro).

Garner even once hosted a silly "pretend cooking show" on Facebook, further proving that she doesn't take herself too seriously.

Since stepping back into the entertainment industry, actress Jennifer Love Hewitt has kept it nothing but real. "It's been a little bit of a hard adjustment — much harder on me than my kids," the actress told reporters at Fox's Summer Television Critics Association All-Star Party in 2018, as reported by People. 

She also explained why she made the decision to take a break from Hollywood in the first place. "It was really important for me to have children and be there," she shared. "They're these full-functioning, beautiful people now, and it's great." Hewitt added that she also just "needed to be a person for a while." 

After attending her first red carpet event in some time, Hewitt apologized for her appearance on Instagram (via E! News). "My hair was flat, my makeup was running off my face and I looked like I had completely forgotten I was an actress in this business who is supposed to look [perfect] when you step on the red carpet," she wrote on social media. Girl, please. Thanks for looking beautifully human.

When people tell Hugh Jackman that he's such a nice guy and down to earth, he doesn't really understand why — or he's too modest to admit it. "Honestly the way I am in life is the way I was brought up. Dad brought us up to have respect, to have manners, my dad would just call it manners, be respectful of people and I also think being Australian is part of that, you can't put on airs and graces here, people will cut you down to size pretty quickly," he revealed in an interview with News.com.au. He also admitted that he has his "moments" and isn't always Mr. Nice Guy. But we're not so sure of that.

Overall, Jackman said he values being respectful — especially because he's hoping to set a good example for his children. The actor recognizes that he can't expect one thing from them while holding himself to a completely different set of standards. 

You may not be able to relate to Serena Williams, the tennis champion, but you might just relate to Serena Williams, the working mother. While you may think she has it all together, the athlete has been open about her struggles as a new mom.

In summer 2018, Williams admitted in an Instagram post that she was dealing with "postpartum emotions" after the birth of her daughter and felt like she "was not a good mom." Williams said tennis training has meant not being with her child as much as she wishes she could. "Most of you moms deal with the same thing," the new mother wrote to her fans. "Whether stay-at-home or working, finding that balance with kids is a true art. You are the true heroes." That's right — you are Serena Williams' hero. 

The Olympian reminded her followers not to be discouraged by a bad day or a bad week. "There's always [tomorrow]," she wrote. 

You've heard of spirit animals, but can spirit celebrities exist too? If so, Jennifer Lawrence would be a great choice. Although she is one of the highest-paid actresses in the world, according to Forbes, she's not above wanting to escape from work to go live on a farm. No, seriously. In November 2017, the actress told Elle, "I want to get a farm," adding, "I want to be, like, milking goats." Given that she was starring in an average of three films per year, we get it.

In addition to her farming ambitions, Lawrence also differs from a lot of celebs in that she's transparent about unrealistic beauty standards. "If you are 20 pounds underweight and talk about eating pizza and fried chicken all the time, that's not going to make people feel good about themselves," she told InStyle in 2018. "If I'm going to the Oscars or having a movie premiere — I won't lie — I'm probably eating differently from how I would in my regular life to fit into those dresses. And I feel comfortable saying that."

Chris Pratt made the decision to stop taking selfies with fans in 2017, which could have you thinking that his celebrity had finally gone to his head. As it turns out, though, Pratt has some good reasons for calling it quits on the fan service.

In an interview with Cigar Aficionado (via Today), the star revealed that he used to be a "pretty deferential, go-with-the-flow guy" when it came to taking pictures with his fans. But there are only so many hours in the day and Pratt said he had to start being "economical" with his time. "If I go out and want to do normal things," he revealed, "I have to be comfortable disappointing people." And if he can't do normal things, well, you can imagine that he wouldn't be able to stay the down-to-earth celeb we've all come to love.

Although he's become time-conscious, that doesn't mean he will ignore you if you end up bumping into him. Rather, he shared that he asks fans if they'll "settle for a handshake" in lieu of a photo.

Although his buddy Taylor Swift has earned a reputation for being out of touch, Ed Sheeran remains one of the most "normal" celebrities — even if he does view Tay Tay to be equally down to earth. "At award shows I never really feel like I fit in, but I think most artists feel the same way," he revealed to Rolling Stone Australia (via News24). "We all put on a front to sit there."

He went on, "But, I mean, I went to Taylor's 4th of July party and it was just her and her mates and it was perfectly chilled, there was no real glitz or glamour to it, so I feel like she's the same way."

Although Sheeran, at the time of this writing, has 13 Grammy nominations and four wins under his belt, he's not jaded. The star doesn't forget that he started out busking on the streets. He told the publication that "the moment things start going well you don't ever really need to do a two-fingered 'F*** you!' to anyone, because it's self-explanatory." Hear, hear.

Adele may be a celebrity known by just one name like Madonna, but that doesn't mean she has a diva ego. One of the singer's friends told People that Adele "prefers a quiet life away from the spotlight." Another person close to the star revealed to the publication, "She really tries to create a normal life for her son. When Adele is off, they spend time at home and have people over." 

Even the magic of Disney is not lost on this down-to-earth artist. She told Ellen DeGeneres on The Ellen DeGeneres Show that she cried when she finally got to meet Disney princess Belle. You have to wonder, did Belle cry too? After all, she got to meet Adele! 

Despite being an incredibly popular singer and songwriter, Adele also went on to admit to DeGeneres that she still gets stage fright when performing. In fact, she said it got progressively worse as she became more and more successful. Thanks for keepin' it real, Adele!

Tom Hiddleston may just be the younger generation's Tom Hanks. You don't exactly earn the title of "nicest guy in the universe" by being a schmuck. Hiddleston's career has been full of super sweet moments. In 2012, a red carpet reporter tweeted to Hiddleston to bring him some soup because it was so cold outside. He was joking, of course, but Hiddleston showed up — on the red carpet, mind you — with a thermos in hand. 

If you're wondering why Hiddleston is so nice and normal, he has an answer for you. In an interview with Empire Magazine (via Bustle), Hiddleston explained that his first job was as a waiter at "a showy opera festival" in England. He further revealed, "People would be so extraordinarily rude that it made me decide that I would never be rude in my life, specifically to people who were kind enough to serve me things." So, it seems we have some rude people to thank for our lovely Loki. 

If you watch The Good Place, then you know Kristen Bell's character is, by her own admission, an "Arizona trash bag." In reality, Bell is from Michigan and she's not a trash bag — she's just human.

In Bell's Momsplaining series with Ellen DeGeneres, Bell delves into topics ranging from breastfeeding struggles to postpartum depression. The actress always manages to keep it real when talking about motherhood. In an interview with Today, she admitted to fibbing about her kids' birthdays. "If it's, like, a Wednesday and we can't celebrate and we're both working late, then — guess what — your birthday is on Saturday. They don't know."

After telling Bell that a website voted her "the most honest celebrity parent in America," the Today hosts put her to the test and asked if she ever lets her kids wear dirty clothes. The star laughed, responding, "Of course. ... Where's the honesty part? Like, duh. The answer is duh." You just have to love Bell's candor.

One of Kristen Bell's friends also happens to be another famous human being who keeps it real. During a Reddit AMA, one fan asked the star to share her favorite thing about being friends with actress Mila Kunis. Bell replied (via Hello Giggles), "She's incredibly unchanged by Hollywood and so down to earth." But bestie Bell isn't the only one who thinks that.

Sergeant Scott Moore posted a YouTube video inviting Kunis to accompany him to the Marine Corps Ball. Surprisingly, the celeb said yes. The sergeant stopped by Today (via DigitalSpy) after the ball to fill people in on how the date went. "We had a great time," he revealed. "She was very cool, down to earth, and willing to learn and interested in learning all about what we do, our traditions and what the Marine Corps Ball is about." It seems Kunis had an equally great time, as a Marine spokesman confirmed that "a good time was had by all."