James Corden was caught on camera engaging in what looked like a heated debate with airline staff over the weekend. But wait—before you roll your eyes and think, “Here we go again,” fellow passengers from this “nightmare” flight are stepping up to defend the often-maligned funnyman.
Yes, James, the 45-year-old former king of carpool karaoke, has a bit of a history. He’s been called everything from “the most abusive customer” by a disgruntled restaurant owner to “difficult and obnoxious” by a miffed director. Oh, and let’s not forget the popular singer who just straight-up called him a “d–khead.”
So, when pictures surfaced of James in a showdown with airline staff, the internet was ready to pounce. But plot twist—he was actually playing hero, not villain, this time!
Our tale begins with James boarding a flight from Faro, Portugal to London, England. Everything was smooth sailing until, well, it wasn’t. About 45 minutes into the flight, the plane decided it had forgotten something back in Portugal and turned around. Turns out, the flaps on the wings were having a little tantrum and refused to cooperate.
Vanessa, a fellow passenger who moonlights as a plane drama narrator, told Metro, “Basically, what had happened was the flaps on the airplane wing which are supposed to go down when you are in the air wouldn’t go down, which meant that they wouldn’t be able to raise them on landing.” In other words, they were stuck between a flap and a hard place.
Back on the tarmac in Portugal, the plane was grounded for three hours, a perfect setup for a real-life James Corden comedy special. Instead of sulking in his seat like any self-respecting celeb, James turned the plane into his own personal Late Late Show. He mingled, he chatted, he posed for selfies. Vanessa gushed, “He walked up and down the aisles talking to people, and let everybody take a selfie with him. He was just really nice, he would have been well within his rights to sit and sulk in his seat like the rest of us would be doing but he didn’t.”
But the real drama unfolded when it came time to rebook flights and sort out accommodations. Only the elite “club flyers or gold flyers” were getting free hotel rooms, while everyone else was left to contemplate a night on the cold, hard airport floor. Enter James Corden, champion of the people. Vanessa spilled the beans, “James was a club flyer and he stood there, and was like, ‘What about all these people who’ve got all these kids with them?’ like saying that’s not acceptable. It’s not right.”
The next day, James showed up for the rescheduled flight, blending in with the masses. No special treatment, no diva antics—just James, standing in line like the rest of us mere mortals.
James Corden, the unexpected hero of a botched flight from Portugal. The next time you hear a story about him being difficult, just remember: even TV hosts can have their wings clipped but still soar to the occasion.
