The Top 5 Best Celebrity Apologies

Though Jonah Hill has recently apologized profusely on both The Howard Stern Show and The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon for hurling a homophobic slur at a paparazzo over the weekend, he's hardly the only celeb to ask for forgiveness from the public.

From Justin Bieber's surprisingly thoughtful words on racism to Hugh Grant's infamous apology on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno for getting busted with a prostitute, check out the most memorable celeb apologies.

Kristen Stewart shocked fans when she was photographed canoodling with her married Snow White and the Huntsman director Rupert Sanders in June 2012, and issued an emotional public apology to Robert Pattinson shortly after the photos went public, also acknowledging for the first time that the Twilight co-stars were in a relationship. "I'm deeply sorry for the hurt and embarrassment I've caused to those close to me and everyone this has affected," she said in a statement. "This momentary indiscretion has jeopardized the most important thing in my life, the person I love and respect the most, Rob. I love him, I love him, I'm so sorry." Though the two did rekindle their romance after the apology, they eventually split after four years together.

Justin Bieber apologized on June 1, 2014 after video surfaced of him telling a racist joke when he was 15 years old. The well-written apology expressed deep remorse for his actions. "As a kid, I didn't understand the power of certain words and how they can hurt. I thought it was ok to repeat hurtful words and jokes, but didn't realize at the time that it wasn't funny and that in fact my actions were continuing the ignorance," he said. " ... I was a kid then and I am a man now who knows my responsibility to the world and to not make that mistake again. Ignorance has no place in our society and I hope the sharing of my faults can prevent others from making the same mistake in the future. I thought long and hard about what I wanted to say but telling the truth is always what's right. Five years ago I made a reckless and immature mistake and I'm grateful to those close to me who helped me learn those lessons as a young man. Once again....I'm sorry." 

Hugh Grant appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno in July 1995 after his shocking arrest for lewd conduct with prostitute Divine Brown, and humbly addressed the awkward issue in one of the most memorable Tonight Show appearances ever. After being asked the now-classic question, "What the hell were you thinking?!" Grant managed to charm the audience. "I think you know in life what's a good thing to do and what's a bad thing. I did a bad thing, and there you have it," Grant said.

A "heartbroken" Jonah Hill apologized twice for telling a paparazzo to "Suck my d**k, you f****t," accepting responsibility for using a homophobic slur. "Now what I said in that moment was disgusting and a hurtful term," he told Howard Stern on Tuesday. "I should’ve said either nothing, or 'F**k you.' Instead I used a word that's not in my personal life, that's not part of my vernacular. I'm happy to take the heat for using this disgusting word. What I won't allow is for anyone -- it would break my heart for anyone to think, especially with all the work that I've done and all the loved ones that I have -- that I would be against anyone for their sexuality." He later went on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon to further apologize. "How you mean things doesn't matter. Words have weight, and meaning. The word I chose was grotesque and no one deserves to say or hear words like that," he said, " ... My heart's broken and I am genuinely and deeply sorry to anyone who has ever been affected by that term in their life." 

David Letterman got serious for a moment on the Late Show in October of 2009, both apologizing for and publicly admitting having had an affair with an assistant for the show in the past, after an extortion plot was hatched against him. Though of course, his apology to his wife Regina Lasko did include his trademark dry humor. "There's a possibility that I'll be the first talk show host impeached," he joked. "It's fall here in New York City, and I spent the whole weekend raking my hate mail. It's cold, too -- chilly outside, chilly inside my house." 

The apology was well-received. "With his masterful monologue last Thursday, Letterman single-handedly gave a TV performance to equal the Jay-and-Hugh moment …  Beloved by viewers and critics for decades, he has abruptly freshened the enduring Letterman brand and demonstrated he still has the ability to surprise even fans who thought they knew him well," the Associated Press wrote at the time.