John Travolta At The Oscars: Actor Grabs Idina Menzel’s Chin In Another Awkward Moment
People got a taste of a very strange John Travolta at the Oscars on Sunday night. The actor photobombed Benedict Cumberbatch and stared at him from his seat, and gave an awkward hug to Scarlett Johansson on the red carpet. The actor also awkwardly groped Idina Menzel’s chin after she welcomed him on stage.
Travolta reportedly rubbed Menzel on the face while saying her name correctly. He said, “You, my darling, my beautiful, my wickedly talented Idina Menzel!” Then he asked, “Is that right?” That awkward moment between Travolta and Menzel was enough to make viewers uncomfortable.
During his appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live: After the Oscars, Travolta explained why he grabbed the Frozen singer’s chin. He admitted, “Apparently, I played with her chin too much.” It sounds like Travolta was getting really handsy with Menzel and forgot for a split moment that they were on live television.
John also talked about his 2014 Oscars blooper, in which he butchered Idina’s name. The actor explained that someone came to him to tell him that he was supposed to be presenting an award in one minute, and he became overwhelmed by the time crunch as he headed on stage, according to the New York Daily News. John said, “I run into Goldie Hawn. I was hugging and loving her up and forgetting I have to do this bit.” He went on to share his story about getting handsy with the actress, which appears to be an ongoing theme.
Travolta said he received a card with Menzel’s name that was different from how it was presented at rehearsal. He saw the unfamiliar name flash on the screen: “In my mind I thought, what is that name? I don’t know this name!” Travolta read the unfamiliar name out loud, and the rest is now Oscars history.
The singer and actress later thanked the actor at the 2015 Oscars for having catapulted her career. Travolta said, “The beautiful news is that she told me she had one of the best years of her life and credits me for that.”
However, John found himself in an awkward moment hours before on the Oscars red carpet. He gave an unsuspecting Scarlett Johansson a kiss during the red carpet craziness, according to a report on the Inquisitr. John snuck up behind the surprised actress, placed his hand on her waist and planted a kiss on her cheek. The awkward moment immediately went viral on social media.
Some viewers took to Twitter and other social networking sites to voice their discomfort.
#JohnTravolta went out of his way to be super creepy tonight at the #Oscars2015. #OscarsSoWhite pic.twitter.com/nK8Nnbr2xY
— Bipartisan Sports (@BipartisanSport) February 23, 2015
Johansson remained a complete professional on the Oscars red carpet. She didn’t flinch one during her awkward encounter with Travolta. It was both of these moments that cemented him as Oscar’s #1 Weirdo, according to The Daily Beast. The news site also explained how he managed to hijack the Academy Awards.
What did you think of John Travolta’s constant grabbing at the 2015 Oscars?
[Images: Kevin Winter/Getty Images]
