Celebrities — do we love them or hate them? They live their fabulous, Instagram-worthy lives far out of our reach, with more money, gadgets, and everything that you could want. Is it so much, then to ask for a little payback? Or at least, recognition of how lucky they are?

We get that life in the public eye, with the constant scrutiny of social media, can have its down side, no matter how big the rewards. But on the other hand, many of those celebrities live and die by their social media feeds — you can’t have it both ways. Does the public’s opinion count?

Sometimes, our fave celebs let us down with ill-advised comments and opinions we wish they would have kept to themselves. Other times, a sweet public image hides someone who is really miserable and rude. Then again, there are those celebrities who surprise us with acts of selflessness and charity that go above and beyond what anyone would expect.

It turns out, they’re human after all.

Disappointment: Gary Oldman Sides With Mel Gibson

Gary Oldman made a fine Jim Gordon in the Christopher Nolan's Dark Knight movies. That's why it hurt when, during a now infamous interview with Playboy Magazine in 2014, he came off as a curmudgeonly old bigot. He slagged what he called political correctness while expressing sympathy for Mel Gibson and his anti-Semitic rants. “Mel Gibson is in a town that’s run by Jews and he said the wrong thing because he’s actually bitten the hand that I guess has fed him.” He also expressed sympathy for Alec Baldwin, who'd just gotten in hot water for calling a photographer a "fag." Oldman also had used words that we can't publish here to describe then-minority leader Nancy Pelosi. His manager published a rebuttal that denied any anti-Semitic views, but Oldman himself followed up with a statement apologizing for his comments. “Upon reading my comments in print — I see how insensitive they may be, and how they may indeed contribute to the furtherance of a false stereotype.”

Beyond Expectations: Jamie Foxx Plays The Hero

Jamie Foxx is one of those actors who can play a tough badass like Django from Django Unchained just as well as a nerdy scientist in Amazing Spider-Man 2. And lets not forget his amazing portrayal of music legend Ray Charles. It turns out that off screen, he’s not afraid to play the hero, either. In January 2016, a man crashed into a drainage ditch in frony of Foxx’s home. The car rolled a few times and then burst into flames. Foxx reportedly didn’t hesitate. He got the man out of his burning car and got him to safety. The driver was badly hurt, and was later arrested for drunk driving, but at least he’s alive — thanks to Jamie Foxx.

Disappointment: Zooey Deschanel Is A Boss 

She's the cute, quirky hipster darling, and if we are to believe the stories from insiders on TV sets, New Girl star is also said to be moody, demanding, and often rude. It’s not just Redditors who complain of the difficulties of working on set with the New Girl star. There are many published reports that are not quite in keeping with the adorable image that has fuelled her TV and movie careers, and even her musical persona as a singer, songwriter, and musician. As both star and producer of New Girl, Zooey is said to be a demanding boss. There are those, on the other hand, who say that most of the criticism comes because Zooey is a woman — that a man who is demanding would simply be seen as a professional. Maybe so. At any rate, she is by all accounts far from the winsome cutie she often plays.

Beyond Expectations: Kim Kardashian Goes Against The Justice System

Kim Kardashian gets a lot of flack for being famous for basically doing nothing but living a vapid, self-centered existence. That's the image we all see on reality TV, at any rate. But, it turns out, there is more to the world-famous beauty than meets the eye. In November of 2017, the world became familiar with the tragic story of Cyntoia Brown, a young woman who was sold as a child sex slave and had killed her abuser when she was 16 years old. She'd received a life sentence for what the courts called murder. The case has garnered attention for the severity of the sentence. Kim Kardashian's lawyer has confirmed to the media that Kim directed her to help the campaign to free Cyntoia. Now that's putting some of that vapid money to good use.

Disappointment: Tobey Maguire Asked To Not Look Him In The Eye

We loved Tobey Maguire’s pre-MCU take on Spider-Man, and in fact many people still cite them as the best. It’s too bad, then, that he is also known for his bad behavior. Redditors and others tell stories about Maguire on movie sets with a reputation for being difficult, including rules that no one is allowed to look him in the eye. He's also been known to get really rude when he refuses fan's picture and selfie requests. A few years ago, as his run of Spidey ran down, Tobey began to become better known on the high-stakes poker circuit. He’d play at the kind of games where you’d find Ben Affleck and Leo DiCaprio. Molly Bloom, an ex-poker party girl and author of Molly’s Game: From Hollywood’s Elite to Wall Street’s Billionaire Boys Club, My High-Stakes Adventure in the World of Underground Poker, says Tobey won most of the time, and acted like a rude douchebag for it — including one incident where he made her bark like a seal for a $1,000 tip.

Beyond Expectations: Ryan Gosling Keeps The Peace

It’s pretty much impossible to hate Ryan Gosling, despite the fact that he’s undeniably good looking, is married to Eva Mendes, and has starred in a string of well-received movies. We could despise him for the perfection of his life if he wasn’t such a nice guy about it all. First, he’s got a stellar reputation on set. When casting was going on for the 2016 movie Nice Guys, for example, he took the trouble to study the background of each young actor auditioning for a role opposite his so that he could offer personalized feedback. Then, he goes and saves lives in his spare time. In 2011, the Canadian-born actor passed by a street fight in New York City. He stepped in and successfully broke it up, a feat that was captured on video. The following year, a fan reported to the NY Post that Ryan had quickly stepped in to save her from getting hit by a taxi.

Disappointment: Reese Witherspoon Was A Diva 

Reese Witherspoon made her name in Hollywood with that million dollar smile and an image of perky-blonde perfection. She was America's sweetheart and became a star in Legally Blonde and other rom-coms. That sugar-coated image cracked severely back in 2013, when she and her hubby were pulled over in Atlanta, Georgia on suspicion of DUI. While her spouse was getting himself booked for said DUI, Reese, herself obviously intoxicated on the video that later went online of the incident, pulled the, “Do you know my name? You’re about to find out who I am. You’re about to be on national news,” card. It didn’t work too well on the Georgia cops. She was so belligerent, she ended up charged with disorderly conduct. In recent interviews, she acknowledged what she called a "mistake."

Beyond Expectations: Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson Always Surprises Us

Where do we start with Dwayne "Mr Nice Guy" Johnson? There are any number of Instagrams we can point to that show him at his do-gooder best. There was that time he bought his mom a car for Christmas. Or that shot of him frolicking with a cute dog. He even apologized to fans of the video game Doom for his part in the disappointing movie version. While he was filming Baywatch, his Instagram feed documented the visit of a young boy to the set. The kid had a terminal illness and was a big fan. When The Rock found out about the situation, he decided to give him a memory to last a lifetime. That’s just one of the many nice-guy stories floating around about The Rock.

Disappointment: Macaulay Culkin Denies Rumors 

We’ve all seen Home Alone at least once, if not every Christmas, right? At one time, as a child actor, Macaulay was making about $8 million per movie — the most of any child actor, ever. But then, that cute kid with the big eyes and sweet voice became a troubled teen and then adult. There were battles with his parents for allegedly mishandling his money. Through the late 1990s, his parents’ divorce battles focused on control of his millions. In 2004, he was arrested for drug possession. He was photographed looking pretty haggard and disheveled by paparazzi and drug rumors have swirled for years — rumors he denies. In 2017, he seemed to be making a bit of a comeback to the spotlight. At this point, he could probably just start from scratch.

Beyond Expectations: Tupac Shakur Went To Prom

Tupac Shakur is remembered for his music, but few people know that he was also a guy with a big heart and a soft spot for his fans. In 1996, the year he died, he was forwarded a letter from his fan club. A super fan had written to ask if he’d be her prom date. To everyone's surprise, he agreed! As the fan would later tell the story, the request was made as a joke, after she’d told Tupac how much she loved his music. About a month later, he showed up in person on her doorstep. Tupac talked to her family and gave the girl $1,500 cash on the spot to buy a dress. On prom day, he showed up in a limo and even stayed for a half hour or so, dancing with her to a few songs. Then he gave her a kiss and vanished into the night. A dream prom date to remember for sure.

Disappointment: Kylie Jenner Is Hypocritical 

She does look picture-perfect on her Instagram feed, but there are many reports that Kylie Jenner isn't nearly as sweet to deal with as her smile might lead you to think. There are many published reports detailing rude and even condescending behavior toward anyone she comes into contact with. We do know that in April 2016, a small group of young fans approached her at a West Hollywood restaurant for autographs. She reportedly snapped at them so rudely, they burst into tears. If we are to believe the tabloids and celeb magazines, she's dissed her sisters behind their backs, and even trashed her own fans. Can she really be that much of a diva behind the scenes? Wish we knew.

Beyond Expectations: Chrissy Teigen Is A Good Samaritan

By all accounts, gorgeous model Chrissy Teigen is happily married to singer John Legend, but that doesn’t stop us from dreaming, does it? It doesn’t help that sexy Chrissy is also, apparently, a sweetheart. Mercedes Edney is a woman from Charlotte, NC, who started a crowd funding campaign to raise money to attend aesthetician school. She’s only gotten to about $300 of her ultimate goal to cover all the tuition when Chrissy stepped in and covered the rest — $5,600 — in one fell swoop. The woman told TV news reporters that she didn’t believe it at first, but Chrissy had sent an encouraging message to her, saying, “I've seen this be your passion for such a long time now. So excited to see you fulfill your dream.” It’s not the first time she’s looked in her own pocket when it came time to help. She and hubby John Legend hired food trucks to give free food to BLM protesters in NYC.

Disappointment: Shia LaBeouf Plagiarized And Got Arrested 

Shia LaBeouf first became known on the Disney Channel series Even Stevens from 2000 to 2003, and then made the successful leap to film. In 2007, and then again in 2009 and 2011, he lived every nerd's dream with his role as Sam Witwicky in the first three Transformer movies with Megan Fox. But since then, he’s made as many headlines for his objectionable and often bizarre behavior. In 2013, he released a short film and was promptly accused of plagiarism. Shia eventually removed the film with a lame excuse about being "inspired" by the original. He was arrested in 2014 for disorderly conduct and criminal trespass at NYC's Studio 54. In 2017, he was again arrested and subsequently pleaded not guilty to public drunkenness and no contest to disorderly conduct.

Beyond Expectations: T.I. (Clifford Joseph Harris Jr.) Is Saving Lives

As a group, rappers are known for a lot of things, but charity and good works aren't typically high on that list. Georgia-based rapper T.I. bucks the perceptions with a solid record of good deeds. In 2017, he hosted his 12th annual Thanksgiving turkey giveaway for poor seniors, an initiative the rapper produces under his non-profit charitable organization, Harris Community Works. Along with his regularly scheduled charitable works, two people claim that T.I. saved their lives. Scott Stapp, singer and frontman for the 1990s hit band Creed, says T.I. took care of him after a crazy drug-fuelled incident when Scott jumped off the balcony of a hotel in Miami. In 2010, T.I. heard that a man was threatening to commit suicide by jumping off a skyscraper. T.I. raced to the scene and spoke to the man via video. He was successful in convincing the man to step away from the edge.

Disappointment: Hillary Swank Went To The Wrong Birthday Party

Hillary Swank won an Oscar for Best Actress for her role as a transgender man Brandon Teena in the 1999 movie Boys Don't Cry, and again for playing a female boxer in the 2004 film Million Dollar Baby. There are no tales of bad behavior on set or arrogant behavior. But, for whatever reason, she went from Oscar-winning roles to a series of less prominent parts, although she has continued to work steadily. Maybe that's why, back in 2011, she took a gig appearing at the 35th birthday party of one of Ramzan Kadyrov, the Head of the Chechen Republic. She claimed at first to have done her "research" in choosing the promotional gig, which saw her wishing him a happy birthday in front of a huge crowd. Kadyrov, however, has a pretty terrible record, violating human right, even though she apparently warned about it from the beginning. Hillary later apologized publicly and donated the money she'd earned to charity.