We've compiled a list of the most scandalous scandals and how those involved moved on from them.

In this uber-connected era, where technology has embedded itself into daily life, sex tapes accidentally entering the public domain have become a common (and feared) occurrence. From Kim Kardashian's leaked tape to <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/pamela-anderson-style-evolution-best-looks-90s-2000s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pamela Anderson</a>'s exposed video, celebrity videos have only become more common since the onset of the digital age. Scandalous stories, true or not, have come out from these sensual videos as they have the unfortunate tendency to create an immediate buzz that is...not always positive.
But why is a sex tape going viral deemed a terrifying experience when, in private, it can help spice up your sex life as a <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/pop%20culture/90s-couples-forgotten-celebrity-nostalgia" target="_blank" rel="noopener">couple</a>? Well, the answer is that having this private experience broadcasted on the internet is definitely not the same thing. When faced with this situation, how can you save your image? Or make this fade out of people&rsquo;s memories?
Curious to see who made a comeback from their private life gone public? Below, see all of the most successful image shifts from our favorite celebrities whose sex tapes were leaked.

Pamela Anderson

Pamela Anderson on 'The Tonight Show with Jay Leno' in 2000. Photo courtesy of Getty Images.

What Happened?
The beginning of the sex tape frenzy can be contributed to <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/pop-culture/pamela-anderson-young-photos-90s-playboy-baywatch" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pamela Anderson</a> in 1995. With drummer <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/film-tv/pamela-anderson-tommy-lee-most-famous-moments-young-photos-90s" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Tommy Lee</a>, who would later become her husband, the <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/film-tv/actresses-over-50-awards-nominations" target="_blank" rel="noopener">actress</a> created an intimate recording that was intended to stay private. As explained in the mini-series <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/men/sebastian-stan-margot-robbie-interview-pam-and-tommy-fresh-i-tonya-gossip-girl" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Pam &amp; Tommy</a>, the couple hired electrician, Rand Gauthier, who stole the videotape from the musician's safe and posted it online. The media attention was so insane that it even lead to the band being propelled to the top of the Guinness Book of Records ranking for the highest number of downloads. However, this experience did not prevent the Baywatch star from finding herself at the center of a new scandal in 1998 when a second sex tape was published without her knowledge.
How She Responded:
In response to these tapes being leaked, Pamela Anderson reformed her image. Instead of being only known for her dream body, she began to stand up for causes dear to her heart such as campaigns for animal defense alongside PETA and advocating for a <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/wellness/vegan-buddha-bowl-lunch-recipe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">vegetarian</a> lifestyle. She involved herself in France, helping to raise awareness about the situation with the Calais migrant camps, prompting action within the French government. At the same time, the starlet became known to the young generation through shows like Dancing with the Stars (American and French).

Kim Kardashian

Photo: Getty Images

What Happened?
In 2003, before the Kardashians became one of the most famous families in the world, Kim Kardashian shot an explicit video with R&amp;B singer Ray J. This video was streamed online four years later in 2007 and created media hysteria that launched Kim Kardashian, and the rest of the Kardashian clan, into the mainstream spotlight. Kim has refused to reveal more information on the origins of the video and has denied speculation that she made an argument to leak it, stating that she felt humiliated and regretted it in an interview with <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/film-tv/oprah-speaking-your-truth-is-the-most-powerful-tool-we-all-have" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Oprah</a>. She later sued Vivid Entertainment and settled for $5 million dollars after dropping the suit.
How She Responded:&nbsp;
Kardashian reformed her image through her reality show Keeping Up with The Kardashians. This bad experience ironically catapulted her reality career and ever since has been able to change her life. She created well-established businesses: a makeup brand, perfume line, and shapewear brand Skims. She&nbsp;now has decided to use this fame for politics; pleading for the recognition of the Armenian genocide and is now working to become a <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/politics-culture/kim-kardashian-unexpected-advocacy" target="_blank" rel="noopener">lawyer</a>, like her late father, to seek justice for those who have been wrongfully imprisoned.

Paris Hilton

Paris Hilton at the 2024 Grammy Awards. Getty Images.

What Happened?&nbsp;
At 23-year-old, heiress to Hilton <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/travel-living/millennial-travel-hotels-2020" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hotels</a>, <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/paris-hilton-favorite-y2k-accessories-hot" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Paris Hilton</a> filmed a sex tape in 2004 with her boyfriend at the time, produced by Rick Salomon. The tape, named "One Night in Paris," quickly went viral and for years followed Hilton. When the tape was leaked, Solomon and Hilton both sued each other and the company that released the tape. She won the trial, pocketing the pretty sum of $400,000 for damages that Hilton donated to charity.
How She Responded:&nbsp;
Following this controversy, Hilton involved herself in various areas to reform her image. She tried singing, DJing, modeling, and acting. Hilton is now infamous for being emblematic of the iconic style of the early 2000s as a socialite and <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/categories/fashion" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fashion</a> icon. Now, Hilton is a successful businesswoman and a proud new mother to a baby boy.

Jennifer Lopez

Jennifer Lopez at the 1998 CFDA Awards. Photo via Getty Images.

What happened?&nbsp;
At the end of the '90s, the singer and actress&nbsp;shot an intimate video with her husband of the time, Ojani Noa. At the end of their relationship, the ex-husband threatened&nbsp;the starlet to disclose the compromising recording in an effort to take revenge against the young star. After a court dispute,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/j-lo-grammys-dress-versace-runway-2019" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Lopez</a> won the case without the video ever being published.
How She Responded:
Between her success as a pop star and her&nbsp;astonishing rise in the film industry, it didn't take much for J.Lo to bury the business of her sex tape.&nbsp;Due to the fact that the tape was never published, she was able to quickly move on from the scandal and pivot her focus back to her career.

Carolyn Murphy

Carolyn Murphy on the runway in 1997. Getty Images.

What Happened?
In 1999, model <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/carolyn-murphy-model-best-runway-moments" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Carolyn Murphy</a> also had her privacy violated. At the time, Murphy was&nbsp;married to Jake Schroeder, and the couple filmed a sex tape while on their <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/bridesmaid-gift-ideas-wedding-planning-friends" target="_blank" rel="noopener">honeymoon</a>. Schroeder later tried to sell the sex tape, and was charged with grand theft and extortion.
How She Responded:
Murphy responded by continuing her modeling career and occasionally dipped her toe into acting. Murphy controlled the publicity around the scandal so that it did not escalate as far as other incidents.

Rob Lowe at The Hard Rock Cafe, 1983. Getty Images

What Happened?
In 1988, Rob Lowe, actor and face of the <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/pop-culture/brat-pack-photos-young-80s-films-hollywood" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Brat Pack</a>, recorded a sex tape of an intimate affair with two women after meeting them in an Atlanta club. After the tape was leaked to the press, Lowe was under fire, as one of the girls featured in the tape was underage at the time. Lowe has since said he was not aware of this fact and settled with the girl's family privately in lieu of a lawsuit.&nbsp;
How He Responded:
Although it caused trouble for his career and public perception at the time, the incident caused Lowe to reflect on the choices he had made since he emerged onto the <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/pop-culture/famous-celebrity-children-young-hollywood" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hollywood</a> scene. "It's one of the reasons why I got sober. I woke up one day and I was like, 'What am I doing with my life?' I'm 29 years in and like people talk, but it's the best thing that ever happened to me. Honestly, I do because it got me sober, sober got me married. I've been married 29 years and I have two great sons. I don't think any of that happens without going through that scandal," Lowe said in an interview on SiriusXM's&nbsp;The Jess Cagle Show.&nbsp; &nbsp;

Colin Farrell in 2024. Getty Images.

What Happened?
In 2006, <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/beauty/most-handsome-guys-in-the-world-irish-paul-mescal-colin-farrell-barry-keoghan" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Colin Farrell</a> dated former Playboy Playmate Nicole Narain, and throughout the course of their relationship, the couple recorded an intimate tape. Following their breakup, the tape was released, much to the dismay of the actor and his publicity team, who worried that the leaked film would damage Farrell's reputation and jeopardize future projects.
How He Responded:
Colin Farrell tends to keep his profile low to begin with, but following the release of his private sex tape, he made no public statements. However, a lawsuit is a powerful statement in itself, and the court proceedings in 2006 ruled in Farrell's favor after determining that Narain conspired with other parties to release the footage. In the years since the unfortunate affair has mostly faded into obscurity, and Farrell's public image has been shaped by his charismatic persona and his brilliant filmography.&nbsp;

Eric Dane on 'Grey's Anatomy' in 2010. Getty Images.

What Happened?
In 2009, Grey's Anatomy star Eric Dane filmed a sex tape with his then-wife, Rebecca Gayheart, and another woman, Keri Ann Paniche. The film was subsequently leaked to the public.&nbsp;
How He Responded:
At the time, Dane defended the making of the time, and told People, "We all make mistakes." After the Los Angeles Police Department investigated the leak, Dane sued the responsible party for over a million dollars in copyright infringement charges. Later, in 2019 he told <a href="https://www.glamour.com/story/eric-dane-most-sexualized-man-in-hollywood" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Glamour</a> &ldquo;I didn&rsquo;t regret it, I have no regrets nor do I make any apologies for my life experience. It&rsquo;s my life experience and I&rsquo;m at peace with all of it.&rdquo;&nbsp;

8 Celebrity Sex Tape Scandals You've Forgotten About

Tags

Related Articles

Pop culture

8 Celebrity Scandals You Forgot About

Film & TV

The Most Viral Moments From 'Keeping Up With The Kardashians'

Pop culture

11 Jaw-Dropping Celebrity Cheating Scandals

Recommended posts for you

Pop culture

According to Science, Bella Hadid is the Most Beautiful Woman in the World

Music

Bad Bunny Begins His Puerto Rico Residency: See the Full Setlist

Film & TV

A Definitive Guide to Every Actress Who Has Portrayed Superman's Love Interest, Lois Lane

Pop culture

Every Time EmRata Proved She’s the Ultimate Girls’ Girl

Fashion

The Defining Looks From the Haute Couture Fall/Winter 2025 Season

Film & TV

A Man of Many Talents, Who is 'Too Much' Star Will Sharpe?

Fashion

Lounge Like Emma Stone in the New Louis Vuitton Campaign

Fashion

The Most Stylish Celebrity Kids Right Now, From Rihanna’s Sons to the Kardashian Crew