Ben Stiller is one of the few major celebrities that you rarely hear anything about, good or bad. Maybe he’s secretly the most wonderful man is Hollywood, and he just likes to keep that little fact on the down low. Or he’s a total diva, and he’s just got so much power you never hear any of the negative stuff. Or a little from Column A, a little from Column B. Since I’ve never really heard anything one way or the other, my general impression of Ben is that he’s probably a tough taskmaster, a perfectionist, a little neurotic, but also very talented and professional.

However, that’s not the portrait the Enquirer draws of Stiller. I think Ben really pissed someone off on the Little Fockers set, because someone is out for Ben’s blood, and they are really hacked off:

The joke’s on comic Ben Stiller – insiders on the set of his just-wrapped ‘Meet the Fockers’ sequel nicknamed the egotistical star the original ‘little focker’!

“Ben alienated most of the cast and crew on the film ‘Little Fockers’ with his vain and self-absorbed behavior,” an insider told the Enquirer.

“When he wasn’t obsessing over his looks, he was throwing temper tantrums and screaming at underlings. The crew referred to him as a ‘little focker’ because of his outrageous conduct.”

Stiller fired an assistant director, demanded star treatment for his entourage of personal chefs and hair and makeup minders, and refused to interact with underlings – unless it was to yell at them.

“Ben’s ego has gone off the charts… he flipped out on a female assistant director for some perceived mistake and then screamed at the top of his lungs, ‘I never want to work with this woman again!’ before storming off the set. He refused to come back until the poor woman was gone. She was dismissed and the next day a male replacement was brought in to appease Ben.”

“Ben wouldn’t eat the catered craft services food and insisted his assistant and two personal chefs be allowed to park right on set.”

The chefs – both stunning blondes – constantly massaged the star’s over-inflated ego, added the source.

“They were the only ones able to put a smile on Ben’s face… It was clear from day one that Ben wasn’t happy unless he was waited on hand and foot.”

[From The National Enquirer, print edition, March 1, 2010]

Reasons why this is most likely total bullsh-t: If Ben was this much of an a–hole, we would have heard about it before now; two, it all came from one source, who probably was this assistant director who got fired (for cause, probably), and wanted someone to blame; three, because I don’t care how talented, rich and A-list you are, you can’t act like that on a film set without someone calling you out. That last point brings me to this question: where the hell was Robert DeNiro when all of this drama was happening? You know DeNiro wouldn’t be too pleased. And you don’t want to upset DeNiro. At. All.

P.S. I really like Ben’s scruff in these photos. They make him look sexy, and I’ve never found him sexy before.

Ben at the Berlin Film Festival, promoting ‘Greenberg’ on Valentine’s Day. Credit: WENN.