Keira Knightley Reveals Early Career Mental Struggles Amid Paparazzi Harassment

Keira Knightley opened up about the severe mental health challenges she faced due to relentless paparazzi intrusion during the peak of her fame in the early 2000s. She recalled waking up to find multiple photographers camped outside her home for years, shouting offensive slurs and provoking interactions to capture sensational photos, which included dangerous incidents like forcing people off roads for crashes. This constant harassment left her feeling hypervigilant and paranoid, with her mental state deteriorating to the point that she felt she was 'going mad' but managed to hide it from the public. To combat the invasive attention, Knightley adopted tactics inspired by passive resistance, such as wearing the same clothes repeatedly and standing still for hours, making herself less appealing to paparazzi seeking new, lucrative images. The impact of this period led her to take a hiatus from Hollywood blockbusters in favor of smaller, more intimate theatre roles and eventually helped her regain control over her life and career. Now in a better place, she has released a children's book and starred in recent projects like Netflix's "The Woman in Cabin 10."