When it comes to juicy stories from work, Uber drivers have a bucket-full! And a lot of them are thanks to the A-listers they get to chauffeur around.
WATCH: Jessica Rowe hits out at Karl and Peter Stefanovic after Uber scandal
From the way the stars act behind closed car doors, to all those overheard backseat conversations, Uber drivers have a plethora of insider knowledge.
Scroll on down to read the best and worst celebrity interactions straight from the drivers themselves.
KARL & PETER STEFANOVIC
In March 2018, Karl Stefanovic and his younger brother, Peter, almost discovered that loose lips do indeed sink ships when an Uber driver revealed explicit details of a 45-minute conversation the pair had.
Pete, 39, was riding in the Uber – along with his wife, Sylvia Jeffreys, who wasn’t part of the conversation – while Karl was on speaker phone. According to the driver, “they all were aware I was there and could hear everything.”
The driver says the main focus of the rant was the duo’s colleagues at Nine, including Karl’s Today co-host Georgie Gardner, Richard Wilkins and several others.
“[Karl] said [Georgie] didn’t have enough opinions and he wanted her to step up,” said the driver. “He actually sounded angry and said he was going to start pushing hard and that she needed to do that if she wanted to stay on the show.”
As for Dickie, the driver said Karl, 46, accused the showbiz reporter of keeping him from big entertainment stories.
Both Karl and Pete later publicly apologised for their behaviour.
JUSTIN BIEBER
Buckle up! Before he settled down with wife, Hailey Baldwin, Justin Bieber had a reputation for getting into trouble – including with his favourite car service.
According to reports, the What Do You Mean? singer, 26, once raised eyebrows by transforming an Uber SUV into his own personal party bus.
“It was like a rave – flashing lights, loud music blasting out of the window, alcohol,” his bewildered driver remembers. “He was with six or seven people and they were all wasted.”
While the driver says the wild group left his vehicle physically undamaged, “it was a complete mess with empty bottles everywhere.
The interior also stank of weed. I couldn’t get rid of the smell for days!”
TOM SELLECK
Tom Selleck doesn’t ask for much from his Uber driver – just complete silence! Though the Magnum, P.I. legend, 75, is known to his fans as gregarious and charming, he clams up once he slips into a rideshare.
“He considers his Uber a private and professional safe space, more like a chauffeured limo than a taxicab, where conversations with the driver are inevitable,” a source explains of Tom, who typically occupies himself on his phone or laptop, reads scripts, or listens to music while being transported around town.
“Uber drivers know the drill – he doesn’t like to be bothered, no chatting, no questions and definitely no autographs.”
TOM CRUISE
Getting Nicole Kidman’s ex-husband Tom Cruise to his destination was nearly an impossible mission – thanks to the actor’s lengthy list of demands.
“He insisted on looking through the Uber driver’s cell phone to ensure he wasn’t recording anything or taking photos,” says a source of the time Tom took a rideshare from LAX when his limo failed to show up.
“Then, he made him turn off his phone and searched the vehicle for recording devices.”
According to the source, Tom, 58, “refused to talk” during the trip, which took extra-long as the driver got lost. “He couldn’t use his cell for directions!”
KYLIE JENNER
Waiting up for the Kardashians! An Uber driver answered a request from Kylie Jenner – and wound up sitting in his car for more than two hours.
“She didn’t even apologise, but at least she paid for the wait time,” says the driver, who adds that when the make-up mogul, 23, finally showed up, she was with a group of friends – though that didn’t stop her from spending the whole ride admiring herself in the mirror.
“She’s the vainest celebrity I’ve ever driven.”
But he did end up getting an extra tip of sorts for enduring the experience. “The next morning, I found an unopened Kylie Cosmetics lip gloss on the car seat,” shares the driver. “I gave it to my daughter.”
JENNIFER LAWRENCE
Drink and drive? As if! When Jennifer Lawrence, 30, ties one on, she responsibly calls for a ride, developing a reputation among Uber drivers as a real “sleeper”.
“After a night of drinking, she’ll fall asleep in the back of an Uber,” says an insider. “She’s even joked that that’s what Ubers are for!”
While a rep for J-Law denies her penchant for alcohol-fuelled catnaps in cars, the insider insists more than one driver has had to “nudge her awake”.
“She’s been heard talking in her sleep before,” adds the source. “It’s wild, the things she’d mutter back in the day!”
