Who knew the E! Glambot could cause so much drama?
It all started after Jennifer Lopez struck a pose at the 2026 Golden Globes. Lopez, 56, turned her back to the camera and then spun around as the lens zoomed in on her. Eagle-eyed fans noticed that she seemingly didn’t say a word to Glambot creator Cole Walliser, who is always on hand to greet and instruct A-list guests, sparking a flurry of reactions online.
Walliser, who runs the Glambot, then shared a behind-the-scenes glimpse of the actress posing, resulting in fans criticizing her for “ignoring him” while posing. (The E! Glambot is a robotic camera that zooms in on its subject at a high speed. It captures cinematic videos of people that are then played in slow-motion.) He later stood up for Lopez, which caused even more of a stir, and prompted former bride Yinka Animashaun to share an “unkind” interaction she had with Walliser back in 2019.
The Glambot director then responded to the interaction on January 27.
Keep scrolling for a full breakdown of the Glambot drama.
Walliser then stood up for Lopez, which caused even more of a stir.
Keep scrolling for a full breakdown of the Glambot drama.
Jennifer Lopez Poses for the Glambot
At the Golden Globes on January 11, J. Lo posed in her vintage Jean-Louis Scherrer Haute Couture gown for the Glambot. She turned her back to Walliser as he explained the way the camera would move while preparing for it to zoom in on her. After she was done, she gave a wave and walked away.
Walliser shared a BTS video of Lopez posing for the Glambot via his TikTok, causing fans to call his interaction with Lopez “rude.”
“Manners don’t cost a thing ❤️,” one follower commented, while another added, “She so rudeeee not even a hi thank you or nothing.”
Others defended Lopez, writing, “She doesn’t have a mic on, that’s why you don’t hear her, but she says, ‘Hi’, ‘nice to see you’ and ‘thank you’ then waves goodbye.”
Cole Walliser Defends Jennifer Lopez
Walliser also came to Lopez’s defense after the video went viral on January 18. “I didn’t take it personally. It didn’t feel rude in that moment,” he explained via Instagram. “I think there’s a couple things that added to the fuel of this idea. One, she’s just down to business. The carpet was closed. She’s ready to go inside. She knew what she was gonna do. She got into the position.”
He added, “It’s just unfortunate that the position was she was facing away from me. So I am talking to her, she is looking away, but she’s getting ready for the move.” Walliser continued, “In the moment, I’m not like, ‘Hey, turn around and look.’ I knew what she was doing.”
Walliser reiterated, “I knew she was getting ready. I knew it was late. We were just getting through it. That moment didn’t feel rude.”
A Bride Claims Cole Walliser Was ‘Unkind’ to Her
That same day, a former bride, Yinka Animashaun, took to X to claim that Walliser was “unkind” to her when she inquired about booking the Glambot for her 2019 wedding. After asking about the availability, Walliser replied, “It is not cheap, if you feel like something like this might be within your budget range, then I am happy to discuss further.”
Animashaun responded to Walliser, telling him that she was able to afford the rental, to which Walliser allegedly shot back, “I don’t see how you could be since I didn’t say how much it was and could be between $10,000 and $1,000,000.”
The bride-to-be then told him that she would reach back out within a few days, but Walliser allegedly replied, “It’s $300,000 I’ll take a 10 percent deposit to secure the gear and once I have the deposit I can do a contract. Ready to get started?” Animashaun again said she would follow up , but Walliser seemingly had his doubts. “If you wanted to know how much it costs you just needed to ask, you don’t need to pretend you are going to book it,” he allegedly emailed her.
On January 20, Animashaun told People that she was “hurt” by his emails. “As a Black woman I am no stranger to people making assumptions about who I am or what I am capable of, but I think his responses to me were exceptionally unprofessional and unkind,” she claimed.
“I was preparing for one of the best days of my life, and to this day, his response shocks me. That isn’t how you speak to a potential client or people in general,” she added.
Luxury Handbag Shopping reached out to Walliser for comment.
Glambot Creator Joseph Kahn Speaks Out
Director Joseph Kahn then spoke out about the Glambot, sharing that he “created” it back in 2016 for E! News.
“Yes I created it back in 2016 for E! The lighting, camera work, lens choices, and methodology are all my design,” he wrote via Instagram on January 20.
He further opened up about the Glambot via X on January 22. “It’s actually very common in my career to do something and then a client takes elements, equipment, workflow, crew, methodology and replicate it without me. I know that sounds like shade, it’s not,” he wrote.
Khan, 53, also poked fun at Walliser via X, writing, “Do you want to operate a Glambot? Here’s how you do it. Put your iPhone on a selfie stick. Record in slow motion. Swing it at someone really fast. Stabilize it with editing software. Slow it with a good app. Congrats. You just made $300,000 at a wedding.”
Cole Walliser Addresses His Emails
Cole Walliser opened up about the emails he sent to Yinka Animashaun via Instagram on January 27.
“I want to talk about some emails that I sent years ago that resurfaced recently,” he said. “The tone in these emails is dismissive and curt, and that is not OK.” Walliser went on to explain that he “did not have a team” when the email exchange happened in 2019 and he was “editing every single” Glambot video on his own and replying to inquiries.
“I was overwhelmed, but that is not an excuse,” he added. “Everything lands on me.” Walliser noted that the “hardest part” of the situation was being labeled as a “racist” because he is “half Chinese” and has struggled with “identity, race and belonging.”
“I would never intend to inflict that onto anybody else,” he added. “I do understand that, reading these emails, people could be upset and assume bias. Especially, given the frequency with which people of color experience being dismissed.” Walliser concluded his clip by saying, “I take responsibility for my words, regardless of what my intent was.”
