Rumors Martha Stewart Will Never Outrun

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On paper, it seems that Martha Stewart has never shied away from revealing the good, the bad, and the ugly of her ostensibly glamorous life. For instance, in the homemaking icon's 2024 Netflix documentary "Martha," Martha Stewart revealed that her first and only ex-husband, Andrew Stewart, had begun a scandalous age-gap affair with her assistant while she was working hard on her career. Martha urged women to let go of their partner the second they learned of their infidelity because it was a glaring sign they were a "piece of s**t," (via YouTube). However, her declaration seemed ironic considering that she fully admitted that she had cheated on Andrew by kissing a stranger during their honeymoon. 

Confusingly, Martha maintained that her ex-husband was the first one to break the sanctity of their union. Moreover, the lifestyle mogul confessed that she had also had a short-lived affair during their marriage. With all that's said and done, it's safe to say that Martha Stewart's marriage was doomed from the start. Even so, she and her first husband only split up after 29 years in 1990. After "Martha" aired, Andrew's third wife, Shyla Nelson Stewart, shared a Facebook post to defend him, labeling the relationship "painful and abusive." 

Their unhappy union caused Martha emotional turmoil, too, because she confirmed to People in 2024 that she had gone two decades without speaking to Andrew. Despite all of these candid revelations, there are some rumors that lead us to believe that there are even more controversial aspects of Martha's life that she would much prefer to keep hidden.

Martha Stewart didn't get to become America's first self-made female billionaire by playing nice. In August 2013, several former executives who worked under the homemaking icon detailed to Vanity Fair how she created a pretty strange working environment. One former high-ranking employee stated that Stewart's company could have easily reached new heights if she didn't have an incessant need for control over every decision. They also revealed that another of the businesswoman's major managerial flaws was that she needed to dominate every room she entered too. 

According to another ex-executive, Stewart expected her employees to have similarly domineering natures. They divulged, "People were pitted against people who should have been their partners in a traditional business diagram. There was a lot of tension, and that is something she seemed to feel more comfortable with." Several other former executives claimed that Stewart had an insatiable desire to make as much money as humanly possible, which would oftentimes trump making good business decisions.  

Meanwhile, several other insiders explained to New York Magazine that it was difficult for an executive to hold their post under Stewart's company, proclaiming, "You can't imagine that a company with a brand that's so big could keep functioning with so much dysfunction." Their source also confirmed that the lifestyle mogul micro-managed her company to a ridiculous extent, revealing that employees had to get her go-ahead on every single one of the 3,000 items that were due to hit Macy's shelves at one point. They also recalled how Stewart was particularly displeased with a pot that the company intended to release and even slammed it on a table during a meeting. 

In journalist Christopher Byron's 2002 book "Martha Inc," he claimed that Martha Stewart's inner circle didn't recognize much of her real-life self in the star's public persona. Norma Collier, a former friend and teacher of the Emmy winner, didn't mince her words while describing Stewart, contending simply, "She's a sociopath and a horrible woman, and I never want to encounter her again or think about her as long as I live." Moreover, Byron claimed that her public persona was merely a means for her to convince people to buy her products at Kmart. He even described the beloved TV personality as being a ruthless person who didn't hesitate to rip into her employees. Notably, Byron is not the only person who has shared tales of Stewart's terrifying temper tantrums. 

In 2000, a limo driver went down an incorrect path while dropping off a bachelorette party and wound up near the billionaire's property. Stewart reacted to the accidental intrusion by calling the police and parking her car right behind his vehicle to entrap him. Then, she screamed about how much she hated trespassers. Somewhat surprisingly, the lifestyle mogul supposedly had another run-in with a driver in 2007. For reasons unknown, police arrested the billionaire's driver moments after he dropped her off at the set of "The View." According to Page Six insiders, Stewart unloaded her fury on an assistant over the phone shortly afterwards, screaming, "How could you do this to me? Don't you do background checks on people? He was Egyptian! What do I pay you people for?"

At several points in time, fans have found themselves asking "Has Martha Stewart had plastic surgery?" chiefly because of her age-defying looks. However, in May 2023, Martha Stewart blasted reports suggesting that she got plastic surgery because of her stunning Sports Illustrated cover. In a Variety interview, the Emmy winner asserted that she had never gone under the knife and attributed her looks to a healthy diet and a generous amount of sunblock. Still, she didn't shy away from acknowledging that she had a tiny bit of filler to conceal fine lines on her face, further insisting, "I hate Botox. It's a weird thing for me. I really and truly don't do a lot." 

Confusingly, during a February 2024 episode of "The Martha Stewart Podcast," the beloved entrepreneur's dermatologist, Dr. Dan Belkin, revealed that Botox had done wonders for the lower part of her face. Stewart interjected that it had actually forced her eyebrows to move upwards and given her a strange look that she loathed. Stewart's cosmetic procedures didn't end there, though, as Dr. Belkin revealed that she had also undergone an ultrasound skin-tightening. 

The lifestyle guru also candidly shared her thoughts on aging, admitting, "I don't think a lot about age, but I don't want to look my age at all. And that's why I really work hard at it." However, after Stewart shared a selfie to Instagram in September 2025, many social media users were left to speculate that the homemaking icon had additional work done. While Stewart attributed her taut skin to serum from her brand, fans felt it was the result of plastic surgery.

Martha Stewart has made plenty of harrowing claims about her time in prison. After being convicted in an insider trading case back in 2004, the lifestyle mogul served a 5-month sentence in the minimum-security establishment Alderson Federal Prison Camp, which culminated in March 2005. In Stewart's 2024 Netflix documentary "Martha," the Emmy winner claimed that the movies weren't far off in their portrayal of that challenging first day in prison because she was subjected to an embarrassing strip search and physical exam. Things only got more movie-like from there, as Stewart learned that prison wasn't the friendliest place the hard way. The homemaking icon recalled how she had an amicable conversation with a guard where she had complimented her outfit and absentmindedly touched a silver chain she was wearing. 

Later, the billionaire was strongly urged never to touch a guard again unless she was willing to endure serious consequences. Those serious consequences came sooner than expected, with the media personality claiming, "I was dragged into solitary for touching an officer," she continued (via People). "No food or water for a day." However, a statement shared by the Federal Bureau of Prisons cast doubt on Stewart's prison story. "While some facilities have restrictive housing units, Federal Prison Camp Alderson does not have one," it read, per Newsweek. Additionally, their statement revealed that an inmate would only be placed in "secure observation areas under direct supervision" if it was absolutely necessary. Besides, even under those circumstances, the inmate would still have access to basic necessities like potable water and regular meals.

In August 2025, an insider dished to Page Six that Martha Stewart was eyeing a spot on hit reality show "The Real Housewives of New York City." However, a spokesperson for the homemaking icon labeled the rumor baseless, clarifying simply, "She says she is not a 'Housewife.'" Somewhat surprisingly, that's not the only rumor surrounding Stewart and the world of "RHONY." In 2024, former star Bethenny Frankel shared several TikTok videos positing that she'd had numerous icy interactions with Stewart over the years. 

The "RHONY" alum recalled how she had shaded Frankel when they ran into each other at Nobu by saying that she had seen her movie, which infamously featured a topless scene of the entrepreneur. Frankel didn't let that shady comment slide and clapped back by making a reference to a Martha Stewart scandal that nobody could forget about, quipping, "Oh, I just got an insider stock tip!" (via InStyle). According to the former reality star, she was equally cold with her when Stewart appeared on her show "Bethenny," calling her a "pest." 

Even Luann de Lesseps' ex-husband, Tom D'Agostino Jr., managed to get on Stewart's bad side with a simple mistake. Speaking to New York Magazine in 2017, the baking guru shared that when D'Agostino Jr. bought her old penthouse, she welcomed him by making him an apple pie in her "favorite" dish. Unfortunately, the sweet gesture apparently backfired as D'Agostino Jr. never returned the dish. A Page Six insider noted that he did indeed make an attempt to return the dish, which didn't seem all that special since it was made of Pyrex.