2015-2022: The Late Late Show, Carpool Karaoke, America's favorite British import.
October 2022: Banned from Balthazar NYC—owner called him "tiny Cretin of a man."
The flood: Staff from restaurants, studios, and shows shared horror stories.
April 2023: Left Late Late Show after 8 years, returned to England.
Legacy: From beloved to exposed—the nicest guy on TV wasn't nice at all.
This is how James Corden went from Carpool Karaoke king to poster child for celebrity entitlement—in one restaurant ban.
The Rise (2009-2022)
British Success
Born: August 22, 1978 (London)
Breakthrough: Gavin & Stacey (2007-2010)
Tony Award: One Man, Two Guvnors (2012)
Status in UK: Beloved comedy star
Personality: Cheeky, charming, everyman
The Late Late Show (2015-2023)
Took over: March 2015 (from Craig Ferguson)
Network: CBS
Innovation: Carpool Karaoke
Viral moments: Billions of views
Guests: Every A-lister wanted to ride along
Emmys: Multiple nominations
Salary: $4-5 million per year
Image: Friendliest host on television
The Brand
Public persona:
- Self-deprecating
- Warm and huggable
- Everyone's friend
- Loves his guests
Endorsements: Multiple major brands
Films: Into the Woods, Cats, The Prom
Status: One of most successful British exports to US
The Cracks (Pre-2022)
Industry Whispers
Behind the scenes:
- Difficult to work with
- Mean to staff
- Different person off-camera
- Ego issues
Public incidents:
- Spat with Patrick Stewart (2011)
- Rude to fans (documented)
- Short with interviewers
But largely ignored: He was too successful
The Patrick Stewart Incident (2011)
Event: Glamour Awards
What happened: Insulted Stewart from stage
Stewart's response: Clearly offended
Public reaction: Awkward
His excuse: "Just banter"
Pattern: Rudeness dismissed as humor
October 2022: The Balthazar Ban
The Instagram Post
Who: Keith McNally (Balthazar owner, legendary NYC restaurateur)
Date: October 17, 2022
Platform: Instagram
The post:
"James Corden is a Hugely gifted comedian, but a tiny Cretin of a man. And the most abusive customer to my Balthazar servers since the restaurant opened 25 years ago."
The Incidents
Incident #1 (June 2022):
- Wife found hair in her food
- He demanded free drinks for table
- Manager comped drinks
- He then demanded free food for entire table
- "Yelled like crazy" at manager
Incident #2 (October 2022):
- Wife's egg yolk omelette had egg white
- He screamed at server
- Demanded free round of drinks
- Server cried
McNally's words: "I don't often 86 a customer" (ban)
The Response
His call to McNally: Apologized
McNally's update: "He apologized profusely"
Ban lifted: Same day
His statement: "I haven't done anything wrong, on any level"
Then: "I did do the wrong thing"
Public response: Too late
The Floodgates Opened
Restaurant Staff Stories
Twitter/X explosion:
Story 1: "Worked at restaurant he visited. Sent food back 3 times, made server cry, left no tip."
Story 2: "Friend served him in LA. Called her stupid for bringing wrong wine glass."
Story 3: "Complete nightmare. Snapped fingers at staff, treated everyone like servants."
Pattern: Consistent across years and locations
Studio/Show Staff Stories
Anonymous accounts:
"Worked on his show. He's a monster. Screams at everyone. Production assistants crying daily."
"Met him at interview. Completely ignored me until camera was on. Then fake nice."
"Saw him berate a driver for being 2 minutes late. Called him an idiot repeatedly."
The consistency: Too many stories to dismiss
Celebrity Confirmations
Mel B: Suggested he was rude in interview
Other comics: Made veiled references
Industry silence: Most stayed quiet (he was powerful)
The implication: Everyone knew
The Attempted Comeback
The Apology Tour
New York Times interview:
- Admitted mistakes
- Said he'd "move on" and "learn from it"
- Didn't fully apologize
Public response: Not good enough
The problem: Sounded like PR management
The Late Late Show Announcement
February 2022: Announced leaving show (before ban)
Final show: April 27, 2023
His reason: "My family's happiness"
Speculation: Already knew reputation issues
The Final Episodes
Celebrity appearances: A-listers came to say goodbye
Emotional finale: Cried, thanked everyone
Behind scenes: Staff reportedly relieved
Industry response: Mixed
The Return to England
Post-Late Late Show
Moved: Back to UK with family
Reason stated: Children's education
Reality: US reputation destroyed
UK reception: Mixed (they remembered him fondly)
Current Projects
Gavin & Stacey return (2024): Christmas special
Reception: Massive ratings in UK
The difference: UK still loves him
US offers: Minimal
The contrast: Beloved at home, cancelled in America
Why It Mattered
The Disconnect
On screen: Warm, huggable, kind
Off screen: Allegedly cruel to service workers
The betrayal: Persona was a performance
The lesson: Who you are to "the help" is who you are
The Class Issue
Service workers: Always knew celebrities could be cruel
Public: Only cared when famous person called it out
The tweets: Finally believed because McNally is also famous
The frustration: "We've been saying this for years"
The Accountability
Rare case: Actually faced consequences
Restaurant ban: Public humiliation
Reputation destroyed: In target market (US)
Career impact: Real
The significance: Usually celebrities get away with it
The Comparison
Ellen DeGeneres Parallel
Similarity: Nice on camera, mean off camera
Both: Talk show hosts with "kind" brands
Both: Exposed by staff
Both: Left shows amid controversy
The pattern: "Be kind" means nothing without action
The Difference
Ellen: Denied, deflected
Corden: Apologized (eventually)
Ellen: Stayed in US, fought back
Corden: Retreated to UK
Outcome: Both careers damaged
The Numbers
Late Late Show tenure: 8 years (2015-2023)
Salary: $4-5 million per year
Carpool Karaoke views: 10+ billion total
Balthazar years open: 25 (when banned)
Time ban lasted: Hours
Stories that emerged: Dozens
Current US work: Minimal
From Beloved to Exposed
2012: Tony Award, beloved in UK
2015: Took over Late Late Show, America loved him
2015-2022: Carpool Karaoke phenomenon, Emmy nominations
October 2022: Balthazar ban, "tiny Cretin of a man"
October 2022: Staff stories flood social media
April 2023: Left Late Late Show, returned to UK
2024: Working in UK, mostly ignored in US
The Lesson
You can:
- Build beloved public persona
- Create viral content with billions of views
- Be on television every night
- Have A-list friends
But if you:
- Scream at servers
- Make staff cry
- Treat "the help" as beneath you
- Think fame means rules don't apply
The result:
- One Instagram post destroys it all
- Staff finally tell their stories
- Public turns on you overnight
- You retreat to the country that doesn't know better
From Carpool Karaoke to "tiny Cretin."
From America's favorite Brit to persona non grata.
From viral sensation to cautionary tale.
From "nicest guy on TV" to banned from restaurant.
That's James Corden.
Who learned that how you treat servers.
Is how you treat everyone.
And eventually everyone finds out.
No matter how famous you are.
The mask always slips.
And the people you mistreated.
Remember.