Celebs Who Have Gotten Starstruck by Meeting Other Famous People

Brad Pitt

While we can bet Brad Pitt has left many people starstruck, there are only two celebrities who have returned the favor.

“When I first met Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon, I was [starstruck]. Yeah,” Pitt said in July 2025 on the New Heights podcast, of his Thelma & Louise costars. “I got over it quickly, though.” 

Dwyane Wade

We didn’t see this one coming: Dwyane Wade’s Scandal fandom left him reacting in a way even he didn’t recognize.

“I get starstruck, but it’s normally people that you would not understand why unless you understand me,” Wade said onToday with Jenna & Friends in July 2025. One example: Seeing Bellamy Young at an event, at the height of her time playing Millie Grant on the ABC show.

“Across the room I saw a character I loved from Scandal, the character was Millie Grant. AKA Bellamy Young … I yelled, ‘Millie!’ “ he recalled. “I just screamed it. I didn’t even know that was in me. She turned around and looked and waved and came over. And we started chatting it up, and my wife [Gabrielle Union] was like, ‘You ready to go?’ I’m like, ‘No!’ ”

Vanna White

Vanna White recalled to Closer a few of the names who have walked across the Wheel of Fortune set who have left her a little starstruck. Among them were Stevie Wonder, Mickey Mantle and Mister Rogers (pictured), whom she called “the sweetest, sweetest man.”

Livvy Dunne

The word icon can get overused, but it absolutely applies to Martha Stewart, and Livvy Dunne agrees. Though the two have both covered Sports Illustrated Swimsuit, Dunne says that meeting Stewart at the Super Bowl left her tongue-tied.

Tori Spelling and Billy Idol

At the iHeartRadio Awards red carpet in 2025, Spelling shared that she doesn’t “get starstruck by anyone, I grew up in this business,” but seeing Billy Idol left her “at a loss for words.” She ended up asking for a selfie — something she said she never does — because “I was so awed.”

Scarlett Johansson

During an appearance on The Tonight Show in December, the actress told host Jimmy Fallon that she had met Judge Judy Sheindlin in a restaurant and was “so starstruck.”

“I couldn’t believe it,” Johansson recalled of meeting the star.

“Were you afraid a little bit that she might judge you?” asked Fallon, to which the actress said with a laugh, “I was a little nervous. I mean, she’s like an icon, obviously. I didn’t know if she was gonna look at me and be like, ‘Get away from my table, I’m here with my family,’ and like, ‘I’m Judge Judy, leave me alone!’ But she wasn’t like that.”

“She was wonderful. And I was so relieved that she was a very nice person,” the Black Widow star continued. “She probably was, I think she was surprised that I was there, and I was very geeked out. I mean, I grew up with Judge Judy. She’s amazing. She was very, very nice.”

Mindy Kaling

Kaling “screamed” when she randomly ran into her “Queen!” Christine Quinn while leaving her father’s house in 2021.

“I SCREAMED when I was walking out of my dad and step-mom’s house and randomly saw @thechristinequinn on a break from shooting Selling Sunset on the sidewalk,” Kaling wrote on Instagram, describing her exciting celebrity encounter. “It’s my favorite show on TV and not in like a ‘guilty pleasure’ way; that show is SO GOOD.”

She continued, “Christine is a fabulous real estate agent and new mom who sells $30 million dollar mansions in 7 inch Louboutins. Plus she keeps things spicy which is always nice! I love the whole cast and this made my year. Queen!”

Quinn left a sweet comment on the photo, leaving a string of emojis and writing: “Omggggggggg I love you so much! I am obsessed with you! I can’t even!”

Stevie Nicks

Nicks may be a rock icon, but even she wasn’t immune to David Beckham’s famous good looks.

“He just oozed handsomeness. Gorgeousness, you know?” the Fleetwood Mac singer told PEOPLE of meeting the former pro soccer star backstage at her November 2019 concert in San Francisco. “I just stood there, like, ‘Is this real? Maybe it’s a dream.’ Anyway, he was super nice and really sweet.”

For the record, Beckham was just as starstruck and posted a photo of him and Nicks to his Instagram after the show with the caption, “What a night in San Fran seeing Fleetwood Mac ❤️Stevie Nicks ❤️.”

Sam Smith

It was a moment to remember for Smith, who got to meet pop sensation Lizzo after attending her show.

“So truly happy I got to meet @lizzo the other day,” he began his tweet, alongside a photo of the star looking very excited to embrace the “Truth Hurts” singer. “Her show was out of this world!! Made me feel so high on life!! She is the one,” he added.

Smith signed off his sweet note by writing, “Can’t wait to watch you continue to take over the world gorgeous xx.”

Billie Eilish

Coachella was a huge event for the rising star but nothing was more monumental for Eilish than finally meeting her idol Justin Bieber. The moment was captured on Instagram by Bieber’s manager Scooter Braun, who later called it “magic” on his Instagram Story. Then, Bieber shared his own snap with Eilish and captioned it, “So, this happened… Long and bright future ahead for you.”

Once the weekend was over and Eilish had time to reflect on her first Coachella and epic meeting with Bieber, the star had this to say about her experience on Instagram Story: “Some of the most life changing things I’ll ever experience happened over the weekend. And I don’t want a bunch of pictures to have to prove that to anybody. Understand how moved I am. I don’t know how to process and relay the love I feel for the people I feel it for. I feel full thank you.”

Spencer Pratt

The Hills alum is not afraid to admit when he’s starstruck. Pratt ran into Ben Affleck while out in Los Angeles in May 2018 and quickly took to social media to share the chance run-in with the world. “Dang! Oh my God, actually I have chills in real life,” he said in the clip. “First time I’ve ever been real starstruck — besides Taylor Swift last weekend — sorry to do this to you on family day.” Affleck was all smiles in the video and laughed along as Pratt gushed over him. “This is a real legend, he had a great attitude,” Pratt continued. “Trippin’.”

Sarah Paulson

She may have worked alongside a star-studded group of women in Ocean’s 8, but Paulson revealed during an interview on The Tonight Show that only one of them had her geeking out like no other: Rihanna. “I wanted to be cool around her,” Paulson said. “I wish I’d worn a diaper when I met her cause I sort of [peed]. Just like a tiny little! Just like a little squirt.”

Chrissy Teigen

The Cravings author is one of the most relatable celebs around, so it’s no surprise her reaction to her and Beyoncé’s 2018 Grammys encounter is similar to what we’d experience if we were ever graced with Queen Bey’s presence.

“There’s nobody like seeing Beyoncé in person. It’s just so incredible,” Teigen said during her appearance on The Tonight Show. “The aura that comes around her. I mean, she just emits this aura that’s spectacular.”

“On our way out, I was like, ‘We have to say something, right?’ ” Teigen recalled. “And I took both her hands — I don’t do this for anybody, it was very weird — and John’s like, ‘What the hell are you doing?’ And I took her hands and I got down on my knees and I was like, ‘Sorry to bother you, my Queen.’ Like, who says that? … Like, what do you — who am I?”

Meghan Trainor

In case you were wondering whether or not Trainor was a hardcore Lizzie McGuire fan growing up, the answer is yes. And if you were wondering if Trainor would then freak out when she met Hilary Duff and they sang “All About That Bass” together, the answer is yes, oh my god, yes, are you kidding?

And just to prove that life really is what dreams are made of … Trainor ended up becoming BFFs with Duff after the two had kids close in age and became part of the same moms group.

Cardi B

The “Bodak Yellow” crooner got a sweet note from U2 frontman Bono during the 2018 Grammy Awards — and couldn’t help but fan-girl. “My god, I got a f—— note from Bono,” she said in a clip while holding a handwritten note from the U2 frontman. “He knows me!” While it’s unclear what the note says, the rapper didn’t hide her excitement in receiving it, waving it around excitedly. “I can’t believe it!” she continued. “Nobody talk to me now. Where’s Bono? And our names both start with a ‘B.’ ”

Olivia Munn

The actress walked the red carpet at the 2018 Screen Actors Guild Awards Sunday, gushing to E! News during their pre-show about the time she met Oprah Winfrey.

It all went down in the bathroom at the Soho House. “She was coming out of the stall,” Munn recalled of the talk show host. “At the Soho House, there’s a window and not mirrors. And I see her in the reflection so I’m washing my hands not saying anything.”

It was Winfrey who finally broke the silence in the room: “‘Oh, it’s a full moon,'” Munn remembered Winfrey saying. Scrambling for something to say in return, Munn told Winfrey, “I saw! You know what, in full moons they say crazy things happen and all my friends are breaking up.”

The exchange had Munn laughing. “I was like, ‘I love you,'” Munn said, explaining that Winfrey then walked out of the bathroom.

Kelly Clarkson

The original American Idol winner was wrapping up her interview with Ryan Seacrest at the 2018 Golden Globe Awards — her first time at the show — when she spotted Streep on the red carpet as the host helped her down the stairs. “Oh my God!” the singer screamed as she turned around, causing Seacrest to momentarily think she tripped before she added, “That’s Meryl!”

Seacrest made a quick introduction before Clarkson asked, “Can I meet you?! I’ve adored you since I was like 8.” The pair embraced and kissed each other on the cheek.

Anthony Anderson

When he found himself seated behind Oscar-winner Halle Berry on a red-eye flight from L.A. to New York City, Anderson admitted to PEOPLE he was completely starstruck.

“I remember just staring at the back of her head like, ‘Damn, the back of this woman’s head is fine,’ ” he said. “I even took pictures, and I was going to post them but I didn’t want to seem like a stalker. I look at them on occasion!”

Chrissy Metz

The This Is Us star is a self-proclaimed Sam Smith superfan, so it was no surprise when the actress took to Instagram to document her in-person meeting with the award-winning singer. “I wish I would’ve eloquently said how much his music moves me and what an incredible gift he gives us all but nope, not sure I even spoke English,” she wrote.

Chris Hemsworth

Hemsworth, who plays Thor in the Marvel movies, opened up about the first time he met his superhero colleague, Guardians of the Galaxy star Chris Pratt, in the September issue of ELLE. “The first time I really met Chris Pratt — and went on set with him and the Guardians — I was weirdly shaken,” he recounted. “I don’t know why. He’s just so charismatic. And good at what he does.”

Paris Jackson

You’d think having The King of Pop as her father would lead to countless moments of feeling starstruck, but it wasn’t until recently that the budding model couldn’t contain her excitement when meeting her idol, rocker Alice Cooper. “I was like, ‘I love you so much. I’ve always listened to you. I grew up loving you.’ I was close to tears. I started watering up, like, ‘Oh, my gosh!’ ” she recalled on The Tonight Show. “I’m crying thinking about it. He’s amazing.”

Emma Watson

It’s hard to imagine Hermione Granger getting starstruck over anyone, but when Watson met Céline Dion at the premiere of Beauty and the Beast, she completely lost her cool. “Céline Dion arrives and I’m like, holding my publicist like, ‘This is almost too much for me!'” she recounted on Jimmy Kimmel Live!. “You have to understand, my parents do not really understand, like, celebrities or Hollywood or whatever else, but my mom and I used to play Céline Dion in the car, like, nonstop. Being able to tell her [my mother] that I met her I was like, ‘She’s gonna lose it. She’s gonna know who Céline Dion is.'” (Well, now she knows how Harry Potter fans feel when they meet her!)

Channing Tatum

You have more in common with the Magic Mike XXL star than you think! During an appearance on Ellen, Tatum was treated to the meet-cute of a lifetime when he got to hug Olympic gymnast Simone Biles. “I’m gonna freak out,” he gushed to DeGeneres, promising, “I’m gonna freak out more [than her], I bet.”

Jennifer Lawrence

There are many things we love about J.Law, but probably our favorite quality of hers is her complete and total inability to stay cool when she finds herself face-to-face with anyone who appears in any of her favorite TV shows. Case in point: when she met Homeland‘s Damian Lewis at the Screen Actors Guild Awards and had a complete and total meltdown.

Emma Stone

Guys, Emma Stone is the biggest Spice Girls fan in the world, period, end of story. It’s not even a contest. Just look at her reaction to Mel B recording her a video message – nobody has ever been so happy to see their favorite pop star, like, ever. Or the mile-wide smile she displayed when she got to meet Emma Bunton outside the reunion tour and even got the coveted caption #2become1.

Eddie Redmayne

As fellow Friends fanatics, we can’t say we blame Redmayne for freaking out when he met Rachel Green a.k.a. Jennifer Aniston at the Screen Actors Guild Awards, nor can we knock his strategy of following “about four meters behind her for the entire evening” until he could snag a photo with her.

Adele

Also a huge fan of Aniston: Adele, who was so overwhelmed about meeting the actress in a bathroom that she accidentally called her “Rachel” when Aniston asked how she was doing. Happens to the best of us, right?

Anne Hathaway

Hathaway is a consummate professional … unless you happen to be trying to interview her when Mariah Carey is walking the red carpet at the premiere of her movie, in which case, she’s going to have a breakdown over being an arm’s length away from her favorite singer.

Sir Patrick Stewart & Ian McKellen

They’re the most famous besties in the biz, but just like everyone else, they just want to be a part of Taylor Swift‘s squad. So, naturally, when she formally invited them to join, Stewart was really, really excited. “OMG I DIE!!! (no really, I might. I’m old.)” Stewart wrote in response to the singer’s tweet: “Thanks for reciting my lyrics … You’ve made my day. You two are ULTIMATE Squad Goals.”

Anna Kendrick

Do you love Beyoncé? Of course you do. But you don’t love her as much as Kendrick, who was so determined to play it cool that she refused to look at the singer when she walked past her, and then totally missed Beyoncé calling her over. Luckily, when she finally worked up the courage to talk to her, Beyoncé was very complimentary.