Step into the digital world for five minutes and you’ll be bombarded by celebrities telling you about their skincare routine, sharing what they got up to the previous day, and explaining why you should buy the car insurance that they have been paid an eye-watering amount to endorse. However, some celebrities have decided to remove themselves from the online space, citing many a reason for their departure, from spiritual realizations to not knowing how to turn a computer on. Here are some of the most high-profile internet avoiders.
Jake Gyllenhaal
Jake Gyllenhaal has made no secret of his disdain for those who spend the majority of their time staring at their phones rather than experiencing what the world that surrounds them has to offer. “We’re looking down, no-one is looking up” were his exact words in a 2014 interview.
Gyllenhaal has an Instagram account that only posts very sporadically, mainly for promotional purposes, and is likely run by a social media management team. As of November 2023, the Instagram account only has 28 posts, which is not many at all by celebrity standards.
Angelina Jolie
Super-famous Hollywood actress Angelina Jolie has often mentioned her dislike of modern technology, once saying that line that you’ve likely heard from a grandparent or two that she “doesn’t even know how to turn the computer on”. Maybe try the ON button, Ms Jolie.
Jolie has also commented about how overwhelmed she was when she tried shopping on the online retailer Amazon, claiming she felt overwhelmed by all the options. “I’ll stick to catalogues”, she said, furthering the theory that she may well be an 83-year-old in disguise.
Rachel McAdams
Not only does Rachel McAdams not have an online presence or even browse the internet at all, she doesn’t even own a television. She has admitted that technology really isn’t her thing, and she prefers to source her news and information from the good old-fashioned radio.
McAdams claimed to have only learned what Twitter was very late into its existence, which is either a lie, or she has been living under the coldest, darkest, dampest of rocks. What a quiet, relaxing life it would be to not be aware of that corner of the internet.
Ed Sheeran
Off the back of a long and stressful tour, Ed Sheeran ditched his iPhone in favor of a Nokia 3310, and hasn’t looked back. He claimed that the constant distraction of having a phone, as well as a tendency to look for negative comments, turned him off the smartphone life.
He does have an iPad, which he looks at once or twice a day, but otherwise, he remains totally off the digital grid. Sheeran has admitted to feeling a huge wave of relief after ditching his iPhone, which he said allowed him to finally be himself once again.
Elton John
Elton John seemingly wanted to wage war on the internet, once claiming that the entire thing should be shut down. To be fair to him, he said this at a time when music piracy was at large, meaning many artists were missing out on the money that they should have been earning.
Elton lives a life similar to Ed Sheeran, ditching a mobile phone in favor of an iPad so he can Skype his children whenever he is away from home. The closest Elton John gets to the internet is releasing his Apple Music show which he presents from home, once again via the medium of Skype.
George Clooney
It’s safe to say that George Clooney hates Facebook and X (formerly Twitter), once stating that he would “rather have a rectal examination on live TV by a fellow with cold hands” than spend any of his time on either of the social media sites. Ouch!
Clooney’s wife Amal clearly shares a similar view of social media, preferring to stay away from it rather than to indulge the millions of onlookers they would both attract to their respective social media pages if they were to exist.
Winona Ryder
The only time Winona Ryder is ever hanging around the online world is when she checks her emails. This is fair enough, as sending letters via mail or carrier pigeon does take a fair bit of time. The Stranger Things actress claims to have never read a blog, and prefers to steer clear of social media.
It is unclear as to whether Winona Ryder even owns a smartphone, as whenever she has been asked about her online presence in the past, she has only ever mentioned her BlackBerry, which went out of fashion, and out of production a few years ago now.
Christopher Walken
Christopher Walken prefers living his life without the distraction of a phone or the internet. It’s understandable, as he’s lived the majority of his life without it, being 80 years old. He has previously said that he occasionally uses phones on set, but gives them straight back to producers when he is finished.
Walken has also said that he never had any temptations to bother trying to figure new technology out. He quotes, “A phone is a little bit like a watch. If you need one, somebody else has got one.” This sort of logic is actually pretty tough to argue with.
Kiera Knightley
Kiera Knightley has always preferred to keep her private life private, staying away from the goldfish bowl that is social media. In a 2016 interview, she admitted that she had joined Twitter for a total of 12 hours, in an attempt to stay linked with the younger generation.
Knightley even chose to join Twitter under a false name, trying to remain incognito, which didn’t last long at all. She claimed that the site creeped her out, and has yet to rejoin, which is understandable considering the vicious state of the website in its current deregulated form.
Sandra Bullock
Sandra Bullock refuses to join any social media networks, partially because of what she learned when shooting the 1995 movie, The Net. Bullock’s research for the movie involved meeting computer hackers, which seemingly destroyed her faith in online privacy.
The Oscar-winning actress has almost no online presence, other than a fan-made account on Instagram, which has amassed 2 million followers, meaning there would definitely be an audience in place if Bullock were to have a change of heart.
Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen
The Olsen twins – formerly actors, now fashion designers – have abstained from creating social media accounts in an attempt to hold onto their privacy. In fact, the two celebrities have only ever posted one selfie online, on behalf of the makeup retailer Sephora.
The pair’s transition from being in-demand actors, to taking a more behind-the-scenes role in the fashion industry has already generated a level of mystique, further heightened by the fact that we can’t pry on their every move through the watchful eyes of an Instagram account.
Jennifer Lawrence
The hugely successful star of The Hunger Games franchise and various other movies, Jennifer Lawrence has publically stated that she won’t ever enter the district of Twitter, claiming the idea of joining is unthinkable to her. This is because, she later admitted, she can barely keep up with emails.
Jennifer Lawrence is no technophobe, but just finds that all the technology that the modern world has to offer is too confusing and difficult to use. The intensity of being a world-famous actor and the limits that it puts on your life are already stressful, without having to constantly update your status.
Scarlett Johansson
Another actor who finds the idea of building up an online presence exhausting is Scarlett Johansson. The Black Widow actor, rather bluntly, told Interview Magazine that she couldn’t think of anything she’d rather do less than have to constantly update the world on what she gets up to behind closed doors.
Johansson’s sentiment seems to be popular among many of the world’s most famous actors. The demands of the job and the constant media scrutiny attached to it seem to minimize the stars’ ability to enjoy a life away from the spotlight, which many, including Johansson, are eager to reclaim.
Emily Blunt
Hollywood actress Emily Blunt chooses to spend her life offline, referring to herself as being a dinosaur when it comes to operating any sort of technology. Such is the speed at which Blunt’s life moves, she once joked that she barely remembers to text people back.
It seems that Emily Blunt’s husband John Krasinski shares his wife’s disdain for the online world, with his social media presence being about as minimal as it gets. Krasinski does have an Instagram account, although it seems to be operated by his management, only posting to alert followers about Krasinski’s role in the TV show Jack Ryan.
Emma Stone
La La Land and Spiderman actress Emma Stone chose to remain offline because she believes that people are too preoccupied with what pictures of themselves look best for Instagram. She feels that too many people are cultivating their lives on the social media site, which has skewed their perception of reality.
Stone’s original departure from social media was prompted by the hacking of her Twitter account in 2012. Stone had only ever tweeted once before her account was compromised, leaving her unable to log on and delete the tweets that were being made in her name.
Sarah Jessica Parker
After being bombarded with too many voicemails and feeling like the online world was caving in on her, Sarah Jessica Parker did what many of us would deem unthinkable… she got rid of her mobile phone altogether. This is quite an extreme move, but no doubt a brave one, especially in the modern climate.
Parker also believed that having a mobile phone while on set was not conducive to a successful shoot, as it can be distracting between takes, pulling her out of character. While she feels negatively about mobile phones, Parker does have access to an email account, so she isn’t totally in digital darkness.
Kristen Stewart
Kristen Stewart has also joined the list of high-profile actors who aren’t tempted by the deceiving allure of the online world. However, Stewart’s reasoning for staying offline isn’t because she doesn’t know how to use technology, or struggles with being too easily distracted.
Kristen Stewart doesn’t approve of the internet and its various websites because she can’t get her head around the fakery and some people’s constant search for digital attention. She isn’t a fan of all the independent, self-made content creators who mask themselves as paparazzi or online news sources.
Kate Winslet
Titanic star Kate Winslet is vocal in her condemnation of the online space and the effect it can have on young people, women especially. She believes that social media has the power to damage self-esteem and force people to constantly compare themselves to their contemporaries.
Winslet is also fearful that social media creates problems such as eating disorders and depression, and made a point when raising her three children to try and keep them off the sites. Winslet even acted in a TV show alongside her daughter Mia which dealt with some of the issues young people face online.
Julia Roberts
Julia Roberts is fully aware of what she is missing out on by choosing to stay clear of the internet and social media sites. She compares it to television shows, saying that you can be fully aware of a show’s plotline and premise without actually sitting down to watch it.
Roberts thinks that if she had access to all of the different social media sites, she wouldn’t be able to take her eyes off them, which would inevitably lower her productivity and raise her stress levels. This means it is very unlikely that we will ever see the Pretty Woman actress on Instagram.
Mila Kunis
Mila Kunis cites an overload of negativity as the reason why she doesn’t live a life online. She doesn’t think that apps such as Facebook, X (Twitter), and Instagram will be of any benefit to her life, especially after seeing the barrage of hate comments that some of her fellow actors receive.
Kunis also believes that she was too slow to hop aboard the social media train, and feels as though she never really understood the purpose of social media sites. She doesn’t know what sort of content she would even want to share with her fans, believing that most of it would be too mundane to be of interest to anybody.
Daniel Radcliffe
Despite there being a multitude of social media accounts pretending to be him, Harry Potter actor Daniel Radcliffe does not have a social media presence. He doesn’t believe that anybody who posts regularly will be taken seriously if they ask for any sort of privacy in their life.
Radcliffe also stated that because he has been “shoved down people’s throats” for years, due to his portrayal of Harry Potter in the movie series, people would become bored of him, and he would even become bored of himself if he were to post regularly on social media.
Cate Blanchett
Cate Blanchett is a vocal opposer of the internet and social media, believing it to be a breeding ground for narcissism and comparison. She thinks that the internet does have the potential to connect people, but in its current form is being used for the opposite.
In a 2015 interview, Blanchett voiced her unease at the way social media divides people and causes them to compare their own lives to the fabricated highlights of other people’s lives that we see on the three main social media apps.
Kate Moss
Kate Moss does have social media accounts for her businesses but has never felt the need to set up any personal accounts. She believes that it detracts from the mystique that models used to have before digital photography and instant posts were commonplace.
Perhaps things would be different for Kate Moss if she were to have entered the modelling scene a couple of generations later, but such is the strength of her professional reputation bolstered by her work in the 1990s and 2000s, Moss feels little need to jump on the online bandwagon.
Damon Albarn
Despite Blur and Gorillaz frontman Damon Albarn’s enthusiasm for using modern technology in his music, he doesn’t tend to use any of it outside the studio. He is part of the Ed Sheeran and Elton John school of thinking, owning a tablet just so he can stay in touch with family members.
Albarn has admitted that his daughter’s obsession with social media put him off trying it himself, and even inspired a musical project, as he wrote the score for a musical called Wonder.land, a version of Lewis Carroll’s classic Alice in Wonderland, updated for the digital age.
Noel Gallagher
Unlike his brother, who can’t seem to keep himself away from X/Twitter for more than five minutes, Noel Gallagher is not an active member of the digital society. He does have an Instagram account under the name, ‘themightyi’, which is largely run by his management.
Gallagher has been vocally against sites such as Twitter, as he believes that celebrities have ruined them, by “hijacking them to sell their s—“. He is also insistent that life was better before the internet and before everybody started living their lives through the lens of their smartphones.
Chris Pine
Towards the end of the 2010s, Hollywood actor Chris Pine decided to take a trip down memory lane, ditching his smartphone and Bluetooth speaker for a Noughties flip phone and record player. Pine is very much in favor of a disconnected life, having previously stated that he likes simplifying his life as much as possible.
Pine’s lack of an online presence hasn’t hindered his career, as he has gone from strength to strength since the turn of the decade, appearing in huge films such as Don’t Worry Darling, Wonder Woman, and the recent fantasy/action hit, Dungeons and Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.
Saoirse Ronan
Irish actor Saoirse Ronan’s humble attitude was the main catalyst for her ditching of the Twitter account she had back in the 2000s. She has admitted that self-promotion and the platform that social media accounts offer high-profile actors made her feel very uncomfortable.
She has also expressed the fact that she has developed a distant relationship with her phone, and technology in general, in recent years, most likely due to the impact that fame can have. She believes social media to be too much work and too stressful a burden to have to carry.
Phoebe Waller-Bridge
When your on-screen persona is based on humor and wit, it is natural to feel that you have to carry that over to the online space. This is exactly how Fleabag writer and actor Phoebe Waller-Bridge feels, citing a never-ending pressure to be funny all the time as the reason she steers clear of social media.
Waller-Bridge also believes that she wouldn’t be able to handle the inevitable barrage of hate comments from online trolls that she would have to deal with, simply for being a famous face. So, it remains unlikely that we’ll see Waller-Bridge on Instagram anytime soon.
Alicia Vikander
Swedish actress Alicia Vikander, best known for her portrayal of Lara Croft in 2018’s Tomb Raider, only had to use the internet for a month to realize it wasn’t a place that she wanted to spend too much time in. She quickly decided to delete all of her accounts, and hasn’t once looked back since.
She admitted in a 2019 interview that she just didn’t see where the joy was to be found on the internet, in particular social media sites, preferring a private life away from the cameras during the times when she is not either filming a movie or taking part in a modelling shoot.
Christopher Nolan
Christopher Nolan has spent so little time online, that he didn’t have a clue who Harry Styles was when he cast him for the movie Dunkirk in 2017. His lack of internet use is fully intentional, as he doesn’t want to be burdened with the distractions that it poses.
Nolan writes his movie scripts on a computer that isn’t wired up to any sort of internet router. He’s also a very hard man to get hold of, refusing to carry a mobile phone or use email. If Christopher Nolan wants to work with you, he’ll be the one making the first move.
Tom Cruise
Tom Cruise gave a typically overblown, award-acceptance-speech-style response when asked about his internet browsing habits. He admitted to not owning an iPhone, not having an email address, and not even having a wallet. Not sure how that bit was relevant, but oh well.
He then went on to state, “My values for children never change. Love, responsibility and curiosity for the wonder of life.” In short, Tom Cruise likes to make movies and spend time with his children. Tom Cruise doesn’t like falling into YouTube wormholes, resurfacing six hours later contemplating his existence.
Justin Bieber
Justin Bieber has been dealing with internet trolls since he was a child, and that has inevitably taken its toll on the singer. After hitting a bit of a low point in his life, Bieber decided to log off the internet, leaving his online presence behind and refocusing on his career and other interests.
Bieber has returned to the internet in the years since, but in a much less active capacity. For someone whose career got off the ground thanks to YouTube, Bieber spends limited time hanging around in the virtual world.
Michael Cera
Michael Cera may be as awkward in real life as many of the characters he has portrayed on screen. He isn’t a fan of socializing, and if he must speak to people, he prefers to do it face-to-face. This is why he has always stayed clear of social media, as he doesn’t believe it feels “conscious”.
Cera is so intent on keeping his life totally private, that he has shunned the smartphone, instead choosing a simpler option. This choice stems all the way back to the era of the Blackberry phone, as he was once sat at the dinner table with a friend who spent the entire meal typing emails and not being part of the conversation.
Robert Pattinson
At a fan Q&A, Twilight actor Robert Pattinson confessed that he had only ever thought about starting up social media accounts in his very darkest moments. He joked that he was too old and boring to join Instagram, believing that he has little to offer the already crowded space.
Pattinson has also had a history of receiving abuse in-person from people on the street, which put him off of joining sites such as Twitter/X, where anonymous abuse is rife. As a result, it remains unlikely that we will ever see Robert Pattinson appearing on social media sites.
Tom Holland
Spiderman actor Tom Holland was once present on social media, before giving it up in 2022 as he found it to be too over-stimulating and damaging for his mental health. Holland admitted that he can spiral when exposed to certain content, which was the catalyst for his online departure.
While announcing his departure from social media, Holland took a moment to praise the work of various mental health charities, encouraging his fans to start a discussion about the importance of looking after other people’s and your own mental health. How admirable!
Lorde
Lorde cited a number of reasons for her departure from the internet, including reading too many stories regarding global warming, systemic racism, and police brutality across the world. She felt that exposing herself to all these stories made her too stressed and downbeat.
The only time when Lorde seems to have any online presence is when promoting albums, or making the odd statement encouraging young people to vote at elections. Otherwise, she is off-grid, living a life away from the black hole of her mobile phone screen.
Pete Davidson
Pete Davidson stepped away from the internet in 2018, posting a cryptic and alarming statement to his social media accounts, where he expressed the pain that his internet life was causing him. He quickly deleted all of his social media posts, soon following that up by deleting his social media accounts entirely.
Davidson told the world how he thought that the internet was an ‘evil’ place, filled with hateful comments that didn’t make him feel good. At the end of his departure message, Davidson said that he will probably return to social media eventually, which has yet to happen.
Brad Pitt
Brad Pitt is another celebrity who has tried to hoodwink all of us by claiming that he doesn’t know how to use any technology. This likely isn’t true and is probably just a formulated excuse to deflect the multiple questions surrounding the reasons why he hasn’t got any social media accounts.
Pitt has stated that he doesn’t want to fuel the ‘publicity machine’ that is social media, saying it is a whole new entity that people get sucked into. There is probably around 0% chance that Pitt will end up on social media, as he would probably struggle to create an account.
Selena Gomez
Selena Gomez is another advocate for the protection of one’s mental health, explaining that she stopped using the internet because her heart was breaking to see “all the horror, hate, violence, and terror that is going on in the world”.
Gomez claims that logging off the internet allows her to feel normal, something she doesn’t feel capable of while online. Having grown up in the spotlight, time away from the cameras, and a genuine level of privacy have both been hard to come by for Selena Gomez.
Adele
Adele has decided to avoid the internet as she believes it would prevent her from getting any jobs done throughout the day. She has explained that social media is designed to be addictive, and she knows that it would easily get its hooks in her if she allowed it to.
She also doesn’t want to expose herself to too much of the news, as she knows that it would give her a major negative perception of the world. All in all, Adele doesn’t want to waste her time investing herself in a world that isn’t real, prioritizing real-life human connections instead.
