“My life is fabulous. I don’t have people ringing me two times a minute.”
Smartphones may have changed the world and the way we live our lives — but there are still people who have refused to get on the bandwagon. For some, allowing anyone they know the ability to contact them at any given time is just too invasive and time consuming. Instead, they’ve opted for something a little more low tech, like flip phones or iPads. Even a few celebrities, who could have access to all the latest technology, have decided to ditch the smartphones in favor of IRL communication — as well as the occasional message sent via fax machine!
Find out why these celebs don’t own smartphones…
1. Chris Pine
Chris Pine has become infamous for being one of the few people to still use a flip phone instead of a smartphone. That changed in 2022 when the actor admitted he had purchased an iPhone — but not long after, Chris said he was regretting his choice and was ready to go back to his low tech phone.
“I had a flip phone for three or four years, and I just got an iPhone because I felt pummeled by how difficult being analog was. It was very difficult, but, having just got this crack machine — it’s really bad. These things are really, really, really bad,” Chris said on the Happy Sad Confused podcast. “I may immediately go back to a flip phone. I don’t know if I can handle [an iPhone] — I don’t know if my soul can handle it.”
2. Shailene Woodley
In 2014, Shailene Woodley decided to completely ditch her cell phone. She explained that she realized that phones contributed to a “bigger lack of privacy” and a “bigger lack of camaraderie and community” than ever before.
“If I were to have one, it would be a flip phone … Since I got rid of my phone, having to pull over and be like, ‘Hey, buddy — do you know how to get here?’ I’m talking to people more than I’ve ever talked to in my life because I no longer have that crutch. The more you get away from all the technological buzz, the more freedom you have,” Shailene told the Daily Beast.
Just a few years later, Shailene admitted on Jimmy Kimmel Live that she had picked up an iPhone without data that she could use in wi-fi but still primarily used a flip phone to communicate with people.
3. Kate Beckinsale
Kate Beckinsale is old fashioned when it comes to technology. As of 2016, she owned a red Verizon LG flip phone, explaining that she was “not much interested in an iPhone.” In fact, the flip phone was about as technologic as she wanted to get.
“That’s about the extent of it. I don’t like my iPod. I like a nice record player and a book. I’m very much about that. So all that happens to me — I used this a lot [the phone] so that’s the only reason I’d say I’ve had an influx. I’m not much interested in an iPhone,” Kate told Slash Gear.
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4. Justin Bieber
In 2021, Justin Bieber revealed that he didn’t actually own a cell phone because he wanted to be able to limit who could reach him. Instead, Justin said that he only owned an iPad that he could use to communicate when he needed.
“I definitely learned how to have boundaries, and I just don’t feel like I owe anybody anything,” Justin told Billboard. “That has helped me to be able to just say no and just be firm in it and know that my heart [wants] to help people, but I can’t do everything. I want to sometimes, but it’s just not sustainable.”
5. Christopher Walken
Christopher Walken admits that he has never owned a cell phone or a computer in his entire life. He says it’s never really been a problem for him because cell phones are “a little bit like a watch — if you need one, somebody else has got it.”
“I just got to it too late. I think I’m right at a certain age where it just passed me by. I never got involved in it because it would be strange to have any 10-year-old be much better at it than I am,” Christopher said on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert.
6. Michael Cera
Michael Cera has been opposed to smartphones for much of his life. He currently doesn’t own one and says it’s a very conscious choice because he feels “a bit of fear about it” and if he had one, he might “really lose control of [his] waking life.”
“Right when people started having smartphones, when it was Blackberries, I had lunch with a friend of mine who was my best friend at the time, and he’d just gotten a Blackberry, and for the whole meal he was typing emails, and I sat there lonely and bored. So I had an early aversion to them,” Michael told the Hollywood Reporter.
7. Elton John
Elton John doesn’t have a cell phone — and is so famous, he doesn’t actually need one. Elton says he has an assistant that’s almost always with him that has a cell phone in case anyone needs to get in touch with him.
“My life is fabulous. I don’t have people ringing me two times a minute,” Elton said on Jimmy Kimmel Live. “I couldn’t bear to have a phone. And I just have an iPad for the kids and Skyping them when I’m not with them.”
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8. Simon Cowell
In 2017, Simon Cowell stopped using his smartphone because he realized it was impacting his life and preventing him from “working or living properly.” Once he let go of his cell phone, Simon says it’s been a pleasure not waking up with tons of text messages.
“It’s very simple. It means you don’t wake up to, like, 50 text messages you can’t reply to,” Simon told ET. “And that’s what happened one morning — I woke up and I’ve got 52 unread messages. And I thought, even if I reply to every one of those, I’m going to get another replying back, and then I’m going to get more that day … so I just turned it off and I went a month, three months, then a year, then two years, then three years. And I love it.”
9. Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton prefers to keep it old school when it comes to how she communicates. Her goddaughter Miley Cyrus says that Dolly is “rarely on the phone” and when she does get in touch, it’s through a fax machine.
“We do use the phone, but she does a fax, and then someone scans the fax, and they put it into a text message, and then that gets sent to me. … And it’s always signed,” Miley said on Late Night with Seth Meyers.
9. Dierks Bentley
When Dierks Bentley went to buy a new phone in 2014, he wasn’t interested in getting an iPhone. In fact, he says he asked the salesperson at the Verizon store for the lowest tech phone they had.
“I’m going low-tech,” he told People. “Everybody else was running out for the new iPhone 6 but I got a flip phone. It has a camera because of the kids, but it’s pretty basic. This one was like 99 cents. I’m trying to call more and text less. I don’t want to check my phone 5,000 times a day anymore. It was getting to me. I’m bringing old back.”
10. Sarah Jessica Parker
In 2013, Sarah Jessica Parker admitted that she had ditched her cell phone because she didn’t like “being behind in both phone calls and emails.” Instead, she opted for a Blackberry where she could exclusively keep up with her emails.
“I chose emails because when you’re on a set you can carefully and sneakily check a BlackBerry, but you can’t return a phone call. Hearing ‘Your voicemail is full’ is horrifying to me,” Sarah told E!.
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11. Ed Sheeran
Ed Sheeran says he ditched his cell phone in 2015 after wrapping up a major tour. Looking back, he explained that having a phone really impacted his mental health and took his attention away from the people that truly mattered to him. Instead, he now only communicates through email every few days.
“I got really, really overwhelmed and sad with a phone. I just spent my whole time just in a very low place. I got rid of it, and it was like a veil just lifted,” Ed said on The Collector’s Edition podcast. “It’s good … The best thing about it is, aside from mental health and feeling better about everything, is the moments that I have with the people I love, in person, uninterrupted.”
