How Perez Hilton went from controversial celebrity blogger to finding God
Warning: This article contains discussion of self-harm which some readers may find distressing.
Perez Hilton hosted a live stream on TikTok on August 4 in which he appeared to be engaged in self-harm and covered in blood, with the disturbing video lasting 15 minutes before it was closed down.
TikTok and concerned fans inundated law enforcement with calls over concerns for his safety, with the Miami-Dade Sheriff's Department attending his house. Hilton, 48, was then taken to hospital where he is recovering.
The controversial celebrity blogger, whose real name is Mario Armando Lavandeira Jr. is a famous figure in the US, having also made a name for himself in the UK too.
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He rose to prominence in the 2000s thanks to his blog, which dished the dirt on all the celebrity gossip circulating in Hollywood.
But his tone and content earned him stiff criticism from the stars and public alike, as he became notorious for handing out nasty nicknames, making cruel jokes, leaking intimate details and outing LGBTQ celebrities.
After years of stoking the coals and taking advantage of controversy, he has since apologised and expressed deep regret for some of his actions and recently turned to God.
How did Perez Hilton become famous?
Hilton launched his celebrity gossip blog from a coffee shop in Los Angeles in 2005, as he couldn't afford internet in his home.
The website soon exploded and was attracting eight million hits a day as he became a 'pioneer' in online celebrity gossip news.
A year after launching the site, he told the Los Angeles Times: "I am dangerous. I am going to push the envelope.
"I am going to be who I am: a loud, gay Latino that has opinions and in my own way, subserviently, I am trying to make the world a better place."
But with success came friction.
While some celebrities would visit him at the café to tip him off to salacious tales, others, like Nicole Richie, turned up to complain about his antics.
Hilton became imbued in a string of controversies and lawsuits over the years, with celebrities not afraid to call him out.
Mila Kunis said in 2018: "To me, he was the first person that created ugly news, that literally just spread filth.
"It was just mean, and so it allowed people to be mean."
She believes the "whole concept of trolling really didn't exist" before Hilton.
Hilton Perez's biggest controversies
By his own admission, Hilton was deliberately spiteful towards a young Ariana Grande for years as she chose someone else to be her manager over him.
"I was really hurt, so for years afterwards I was super petty toward Ariana on my website and on social media," he wrote in his 2020 memoir, TMI: My Life in Scandal. "I regret that."
But that was far from his only controversy.
One of his most high-profile feuds came with Britney Spears, who he targeted for years, infamously featuring a T-shirt on his website which carried the message 'Why couldn't it be Britney?' following the death of Heath Ledger in 2008.
He also labelled her an 'unfit mother' in 2007 but told Good Morning Britain in 2021 that: “I regret a lot or most of what I said about Britney."
In 2010, he nicknamed Christina Aguilera 'Floptina', according to the BBC.
In 2013, E Online reports, Lady Gaga accused Hilton of stalking her, writing in a post on Twitter: "STAY AWAY FROM ME + MY FAMILY YOU ARE SICK TRYING TO RENT AN APARTMENT IN MY BUILDING TO STALK ME. LEAVE ME ALONE!!!"
Hilton denied the claim and told the Hollywood Reporter: "I am a critic and not a stalker."
He's also been named in lawsuits involving Colin Farrell's 2005 sex tape, copyright infringement for posting unauthorised recordings of Spears, defamation against DJ Samantha Ronson, and for posting nude photos of Jennifer Aniston.
Hilton, who is gay, also drew revulsion from the LGBTQ community for outing celebrities, with the likes of Neil Patrick Harris, Matt Bomer and Lance Bass of NSYNC all being targeted.
Hilton has been extremely remorseful in the years since, apologising for his actions on multiple occasions.
In TMI: My Life in Scandal he wrote: "I have a ton of regrets, particularly because I now see that I never needed to be so mean or cruel.
"One of the many things I regret is that I hurt so many people by giving them nasty nicknames, and above all that I was unkind to the children of celebrities.
"I also regret that I thought it was OK to out celebrities. That is something I no longer believe."
Perez found God during a health scare
A few months before his worrying live stream, in April, Perez posted a nine-minute video in which he explained that 'God presented himself' to him during a 21-day stay in hospital as he battled sepsis.
He said God had 'forgiven him' for his past mistakes and that: "Almost more importantly, I have forgiven myself."
He also talked about how great it was to feel support from well-wishers during his health scare after dealing with hate for years.
"I'm not used to being supported, I'm used to getting hate," he said.
"So having people send positive vibes my way... Thank you, thank you. I made a lot of mistakes in my past. We all have.
"Nobody's perfect. But my mistakes are very public. The internet is forever.
"Receipts are forever. I carry with me deep shame and regret. I'm sorry, I will continue to apologise. I have also reached out to make amends."
Hilton continued: "I have apologised publicly and privately to dozens of people. Because I was so selfish, because I didn't care who I hurt, I just cared about the views, the attention, the money - people hated me."
He added that people are 'entitled' to think he deserves to ''pay for the mistakes and the bad decisions and the hurt that he caused in the past."
"It is valid," he said. "I earned those thoughts, but I forgive myself.
"I don't do gossip. I do celebrity journalism. And I have to provide for my family. I have three young children, and my mother that I also support, and my sister who works for me. I'm doing my best."
If you’ve been affected by any of these issues and want to speak to someone in confidence, please don’t suffer alone. Call Samaritans for free on their anonymous 24-hour phone line on 116 123 or contact Harmless by visiting their website https://harmless.org.uk.
Daniel Murphy