Jennifer Aniston's Biggest Controversies Over The Years

For much of her career, Jennifer Aniston was known as an incredibly unproblematic Hollywood darling. After gaining fame for her beloved role as Rachel Green in "Friends," she started dating Brad Pitt in 1998, and they became an It couple in no time at all. So, fans were naturally overjoyed when the A-listers announced their engagement in 1999 and then married the following year. Aniston and Pitt only gave us more to love by gushing about each other every chance they got and making iconic red carpet appearances together too. Everything seemed to be going well for the beloved couple until 2003, when Pitt started working on "Mr. and Mrs. Smith" with Angelina Jolie. 

Speaking to Vogue in 2006, the "Maria" star shared how she bonded with her co-star on the set, noting, "Because of the film, we ended up being brought together to do all these crazy things, and I think we found this strange friendship and partnership that kind of just suddenly happened," per People. Soon, the Oscar winner found herself eagerly awaiting her work hours so she could spend time with Pitt. While insisting that she was unaware of the intimate details of his private life, Jolie opined, "It was clear he was with his best friend, someone he loves and respects." 

Jolie insisted that they only realized they had deeper feelings for each other after wrapping up filming in 2004, with the "Maleficent" star stressing that their relationship remained platonic until Pitt and Aniston split in 2005. However, Aniston shared her side of the story shortly afterward, and it most definitely did not paint her ex-husband and his new wife in the best light, challenging her good-girl status in the process. 

In September 2005, Jennifer Aniston opened up about the dissolution of her high-profile marriage to Brad Pitt during an interview with Vanity Fair. When the beloved TV star was questioned about whether she believed that her ex-husband had indeed remained faithful to her until they parted ways, Aniston answered simply, "I choose to believe my husband." However, she added, "At this point, I wouldn't be surprised by anything, but I would much rather choose to believe him." Aniston's close friend and "Friends" co-star, Courteney Cox, was in the same boat since she also believed that Pitt had not been physically intimate with Angelina Jolie, but rather that they had formed an emotionally intimate connection. 

Tragically, this made the "Babylon" star more absent in his marriage. The "Morning Show" star confessed that Pitt wasn't supportive of her as she dealt with "Friends" coming to an end and, even worse, he didn't attend their final day of filming because of supposed work commitments. Additionally, she ran into Jolie on the sitcom lot and told her that Pitt looked forward to their collaboration and hoped they had a blast on set.

Aniston subtly threw some shade at her love rival during a 2008 chat with Vogue. The Emmy winner acknowledged that she had learned of Pitt's bond with his co-star through her interviews, asserting, "I felt those details were a little inappropriate to discuss." The actor continued by seemingly referring to Jolie's 2006 own Vogue interview by saying, "That stuff about how she couldn't wait to get to work every day? That was really uncool."

While chatting with Sebastian Stan for Variety's "Actors on Actors" series, in June 2022, Jennifer Aniston acknowledged that she was glad she got to experience Hollywood before it was overrun by influencers. The Emmy winner argued that the overwhelming number now present in the industry was "diluting the actor's job" in a way. Unfortunately, commentators on X, formerly known as Twitter, didn't take too kindly to her stance. Several critics argued that someone like Jennifer, who supposedly got her start in Hollywood because of her actor parents, John Aniston and Nancy Dow, shouldn't comment on people who earned their seat at the table. Meanwhile, others wrote that Jennifer had diminished the work that went into being an influencer with her callous remarks. 

The "Cake" star warranted a similarly negative reaction when she called Marvel out in a 2019 interview with Variety. After being asked about what compelled her to make her big TV comeback on "The Morning Show," she pointed out that streaming services had drastically improved the quality of their shows, "And then you're seeing what's available out there and it's just diminishing and diminishing in terms of, it's big Marvel movies." Jennifer continued, "Or things that I'm not just asked to do or really that interested in living in a green screen." In response, critics noted that she had appeared in her fair share of critical flops, which also arguably diminished the quality of cinema. Meanwhile, a Redditor posited that the "Murder Mystery" star's comments stemmed from jealousy since Angelina Jolie's addition to "Eternals" was announced just a few months prior.

In August 2024, InTouch Weekly gave rise to the viral rumors that Barack Obama was having an affair with Jennifer Aniston. The tabloid centered their report around "Who? Weekly" podcast co-host Lindsey Weber's wild claim that Barack and Michelle Obama had drifted apart and the former president was secretly involved with Aniston. Although Weber confirmed that her scoop came from a trusty insider, she conceded that it could still be a lie. According to PopCulture, a confidant dished to InTouch Weekly that the "We're The Millers" star and beloved leader had grown close after she gradually grew more vocal about her political views and he stepped further into Hollywood.

As the rumored couple started chatting, they realized they shared tons of common ground and formed a deep bond. "Michelle knows they're chummy, and apparently she's not thrilled," one source disclosed. "Jen is stealing her husband's attention. But she also trusts Barack." However, Aniston tackled the Barack affair rumors with a surprising confession when she appeared on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" in October 2024. The Emmy winner admitted that she "was not mad" about the gossip because it just seemed way too ridiculous to take seriously. Still, Aniston made it clear that there was absolutely no stock to the rumors, clarifying, "I've met [Barack] once, and I know Michelle more." 

Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to kill the story. In January 2025, social media influencer Melanie King shared an X post that quickly went viral claiming that her former manager knew the actor's friend circle and they were all aware of the affair.

Jennifer Aniston starred in a controversial Emirates commercial in 2015 that, luckily for her, most people forgot about. In it, the "Friends" star has a nightmare that she is on a plane that doesn't have a shower and has a complete breakdown as a result. However, she eventually wakes up on a luxurious Emirates plane and breathes a huge sigh of relief. The ad had Redditors extremely divided. While some reckoned that the commercial made valid points about the lack of proper amenities on American flights, others were left rolling their eyes at the perceived snobbery. Several critics also took issue with the fact that the commercial criticized low-cost carriers when they were actually the most accessible means of travel for the vast majority of people. 

However, it's safe to say that Delta Airlines definitely agreed with the naysayers because they swiftly released a video criticizing the Emirates ad campaign. In it, a narrator intoned, "The Gulf carriers have destroyed competition in countries worldwide, and now they are targeting the United States with lavish sponsorships and slick advertising," as clips of the Emirates ad played (via the Daily Mail). Two Delta employees also appeared in the video to express their hurt at Aniston painting American carriers in a bad light. 

Meanwhile, Boutros Boutros, Senior Vice President of Corporate Communication, gave a statement to Fox News defending both the commercial and Aniston's involvement in it. After arguing that they simply created a unique, light-hearted ad that put their best assets on display, he gushed of the TV icon, "Her professionalism and comedic talent shone on the set and we are very pleased with the outcome."

During Jennifer Aniston's March 2023 chat with AFP, she rolled her eyes at the supposedly ultra-sensitive nature of the world today and how it had negatively impacted comedy. The actor reckoned that comedians could get away with doing more edgy bits in the past because audiences realized, "It was about educating people on how ridiculous people were," (via Variety). She added, "And now we're not allowed to do that." Additionally, Aniston also made her feelings about "Friends" moments that didn't age well crystal clear. 

After acknowledging that plenty of people couldn't revisit the hit sitcom without noticing some of its more "offensive" themes, she reasoned, "There were things that were never intentional and others... well, we should have thought it through — but I don't think there was a sensitivity like there is now." Needless to say, her controversial comments again sparked backlash. Although some X commenters thought Aniston had a fair point, others felt she had glossed over the fact that "Friends" had more than its fair share of problematic moments.

However, it doesn't seem like the backlash from the incident changed her perspective. Aniston later told the Wall Street Journal in August 2023 that she hated cancel culture and couldn't grasp its purpose, wondering aloud, "Is there no redemption? I don't know. I don't put everybody in the Harvey Weinstein basket." In contrast, "Friends" co-creator Marta Kauffman expressed her regrets about the lack of diversity in the show in a 2022 LA Times interview, and even pledged $4 million to her alma mater's African and African American studies department.

In 2024, Jennifer Aniston got into a viral, and very public, spat with JD Vance. As that year's presidential elections rolled around, a resurfaced clip from the vice presidential candidate's 2021 chat with Tucker Carlson started doing the rounds on social media. During a rant about the supposed state of the U.S., Vance claimed that the country was being controlled by "a bunch of childless cat ladies who are miserable at their own lives and the choices that they've made and so they want to make the rest of the country miserable, too," per NPR. 

Aniston, who has been open about her struggles with infertility, was understandably among the many women offended by the remark. She posted an Instagram Story in July to express her disbelief at the idea that someone like the bestselling "Hillbilly Elegy" author was a leading contender to be VP. The "Friends" star took things a step further by writing that she wished Vance's toddler daughter could have children naturally when she grew older because her father had previously tried to strip away legal protections for IVF. 

Vance clapped back during an appearance on "The Megyn Kelly Show" later that same month. "You have Hollywood celebrities saying, 'Oh, well, JD Vance, what if your daughter suffered fertility problems?' Well, first of all, that's disgusting because my daughter is 2 years old," the former Ohio senator professed. After insisting that he would be incredibly supportive of his daughter if she were to ever deal with fertility struggles, Vance confessed to being incredibly frustrated by how averse Democrats supposedly were to families.