The Most Startling Oscar Moments Ever
The Oscars are an evening hosted and attended exclusively by the biggest names in the entertainment industry. Over the 95-year history of the Oscars, this whirling pot of talent , egos, and weirdness has unavoidably produced a lot of strange moments. These incidents vary from little abnormalities, such as dubious statements and dress choices, to enormous blunders, humiliating performances, and, in one notorious instance, an actual physical assault. That’s the reason we’ve compiled 9 of the most bizarre incidents ever in one spot.
1. The Bizarre Outfits of Trey Parker and Matt Stone
Matt Stone and Trey Parker, the creators of South Park , will forever go down in the history of the Academy Awards for their outfits. When Parker received an award nomination in 2000, the writers of South Park decided to show up to the event dressed as outrageously as possible. They claimed they were on acid, and Parker and Stone showed up to the Oscars decked up in full rebellious regalia; these were not your normal gowns. The South Park writers wore exact copies of Gwyneth Paltrow and Jennifer Lopez’s outfits from the previous year to the award presentation. Parker revealed in an interview , “The Oscars is kind of everything we’re against. So we were thinking, what should we wear? Should we wear chicken outfits? Or pirate costumes? The Academy Awards should be like a costume ball. It would be a lot more fun.”
2. Angelina Jolie Gave Her Brother a Kiss
At the 2000 Vanity Fair Oscar Party, Angelina Jolie gave her brother James Haven a massive peck on the lips. Earlier in the evening, the actress accepted her Best Supporting Actress award for Girl, Interrupted, and declared herself ‘so in love’ with her brother. She said at the time, “I’m in shock, and I’m so in love with my brother right now. He just held me and said he loved me, and I know he’s so happy for me. And, um, thank you for that.” Although she had previously won a Golden Globe and been nominated for an Emmy for her depiction of the late model Gia Marie Carangi in the HBO movie Gia , she was still relatively new to the film business at the time.
3. Tom Hanks Outed His High School Instructor
At the 66th Academy Awards on March 21, 1994, Hanks won the Best Actor trophy for his performance in the film Philadelphia , which tells the story of a homosexual lawyer who is slowly losing his life to AIDS. His Oscar victory speech immediately became one of the most poignant and unforgettable in history. As reported by People , Hanks phoned Rawley Farnsworth, his acting instructor in high school, before he had even received the prize, to get permission to acknowledge him in the speech. During the 66th Academy Awards, the actor recognized his old acting instructor as one of ‘the finest gay Americans,’ unwittingly outing his teacher.
4. The Notable Oscar Awards Streaker
It could be the most humorous Oscar moment ever. A guy appeared out of nowhere on April 4, 1974, during David Niven’s introduction of Elizabeth Taylor to accept the Best Picture award. He flashed a peace sign and much more. Robert Opel, a well-known artist and participant in the LGBT activist movement of the 1970s, was the streaker, a 33-year-old man. He had already gained notoriety for undressing at Los Angeles Council meetings and had been jailed for indecency (for which he was subsequently placed on probation). For Opel, the state was suppressing people’s ‘sexual freedom.’ John Cena paid an ode to this incident at the 2024 Oscars, too.
5. A Shocked Halle Berry Was Grabbed and Kissed by Adrien Brody
The moment in question happened in 2003 at the 75th Annual Academy Awards when Halle Berry gave Adrian Brody the Best Actor award for his performance in The Pianist . The audience was taken aback when he suddenly appeared on stage, seized her face, and planted an uncomfortable, lingering kiss on her lips. Berry said in a 2017 interview with Andy Cohen that the kiss wasn’t premeditated, and she had no clue what was going on, even though the passionate kiss was dismissed at the time.
6. The Oscar Boycott of Sacheen Littlefeather and Marlon Brando
It wasn’t unique to Marlon Brando to make a political statement at the Oscars; in fact, this particular incident wasn’t even the last. Brando was the front-runner to win Best Actor for The Godfather , but he abstained from the 1973 event to voice his disapproval of how Native Americans were portrayed in Hollywood. Actor and Yaqui campaigner Sacheen Littlefeather, who was dressed in a buckskin outfit and moccasins, somberly said that Brando was unable to receive the Oscar in March 1973 because of the way the film business ‘treats American Indians today.’ A few people in the crowd gave applause. Some booed.
7. The ‘Racist’ Joke About Alejandro Gonzalez Iñárritu
By making what some saw to be a ‘racist’ remark about the Mexican director of Birdman , which won four Academy Awards, Sean Penn provoked outrage at the Oscars. As reported by NBC News , The two-time Oscar winner addressed the crowd, asking, “Who gave this son of a b***h a green card?” before announcing that Birdman had won Best Picture. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu, who won an award in that category as well, directed the film. After the joke, the actor was subjected to harsh criticism on social media and accused of racism. When speaking to reporters at the 87th Academy Awards, Iñárritu, unaffected by the joke, said, “Sean and I had that kind of brutal relationship where only true friendship can survive.”
8. Will Smith Slapping Chris Rock on Live TV
A notorious incident in the history of the Academy Awards, and you know exactly what we’re talking about. After comedian Chris Rock made a joke about Will Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, onstage at the 2022 Oscars, Smith became the topic of the world because the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air actor went on stage and slapped the host, saying, “Keep my wife’s name out of your f-ing mouth.” Since the slap, a lot has happened: Smith has apologized twice and been barred from Academy events for ten years. Almost a year after the event, Rock finally gave a detailed response in a live comedy presentation. Even though it was a talker throughout the broadcast, the 2023 Oscars went down without a hitch.
9. Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty Declared La La Land as the Winner by Mistake
The legendary costars of Bonnie and Clyde , Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway, introduced the candidates, but there was an unsettling vibe as soon as Beatty revealed the winner. He had looked at the card for a long while, then paused to see whether the envelope included any further cards. He took a few moments to think before he spoke again, even looking at the wings for assistance, and then he turned to face Dunaway, who said La La Land had won the Best Picture . However, it wasn’t until the La La Land cast had taken the stage and begun their speech that it was discovered that Moonlight had actually won the 2017 Best Picture Oscar, with the mix-up being considered one of the most embarrassing moments in Oscar history.