fate of the well known is to be misunderstood

'The fate of the well known is to be misunderstood'

After watching the BAFTA's on Monday evening, Meryl Streep stated this in her acceptance speech. It's stuck with me. Not because she's referring to Margaret Thatcher. In fact, we can forget the context of which she was speaking and just take these words as they stand.
It's a little ironic that the well known are destined to be misunderstood, is it not? Is it judgmental onlookers who are often too quick to cast a stone? Or is it self-preservation and self-protection to the extent of a creation of the  false-self which we present to the world. A mask, or a facade?
I think we sometimes have to alter the way we view people, and perhaps that lies in altering the way we view ourselves.