Anthony Michael Hall - in The Media

In The Media

Hall became a regular subject of tabloid media after New York Magazine named him a member of the "Brat Pack", the group of young actors who became famous in the 1980s and frequently starred together. In the late '80s, Hall's drinking problem, which began in his early teens, made headlines. Hall eventually quit drinking and became fully sober by 1990. "The truth is, I had my partying nights, but I never really bounced at the bottom", he said. "I never went to rehab...I was able to govern myself and continue my work."

In 1990, Hall's physical appearance in Edward Scissorhands caught audiences off guard. His more muscular image provoked rumors of steroids, but Hall later said that "the weight gain was natural."

Hall's role in the 1993 film Six Degrees of Separation managed to make news not because of what occurred onscreen, but rather what failed to occur. Hall played a gay love interest to Will Smith, who had previously agreed to a kissing scene between the two. However, on the day of the shoot, Smith backed off. Smith told the press that he called Denzel Washington for advice, who told him that an onscreen same-sex kiss was a bad career move. When asked about the incident during an interview, Hall said, "I didn't care. I wasn't that comfortable with it, either, and ultimately, we used a camera trick."