Here Are 8 Cringe-Worthy Oscar Fails, But Hey, That’s Showbiz Baby

With the 96th Academy Awards just a couple days away, I thought it was time we looked back at Oscar fails of the past, because let’s face it, showbiz never runs smoothly…

ABC

1.

When La La Land was mistakenly announced as the winner of Best Picture

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During the 2017 Oscars, Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty were tasked with presenting the Best Picture winner which was a close call between La La Land and Moonlight. As Warren struggled to read the card, Faye took over and announced La La Land as the winner. It wasn’t until halfway through the acceptance speeches that someone intervened to reveal that Moonlight  was the actual winner. Of course, it was a moment of chaos, shock, and complete awe. The reason for such a big mistake? Someone accidentally handed Warren Beatty the Best Actress envelope for Emma Stone’s La La Land win, which caused the confusion.

2.

John Travolta birthing the meme of “Adele Dazeem”

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It’s been TEN YEARS since this moment, and it has to be one of the funniest Oscar “fails” thus far. John Travolta was introducing Idina Menzel before she sang the Oscar-winning hit “Let It Go” from Frozen. Unfortunately, he botched her name and instead announced the “wickedly talented, one and only, Adele Dazeem.” It remains one the most memeable Oscar moments, and for that John, we thank you.

3.

That time when Jennifer Lawrence fell before accepting her award

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Imagine the excitement of winning your first ever Oscar, and as you eagerly clamber the stairs to grasp that coveted, golden statue, you fall… In front of everyone. Well, that’s what happened to Jennifer Lawrence in 2013 when she won her first Oscar as Best Actress for Silver Linings Playbook. Luckily, the actor’s sense of humour was still in tact as she started her speech with “you guys are just standing up because you feel bad that I fell, and that’s really embarrassing.”

4.

And who could forget “the wrong Frank”?

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Yup, Oscar bloopers still happened wayyy back in 1934. Will Rogers announced the winner for Best Director with, “It couldn’t have happened to a nicer guy. Come up and get it, Frank!” Of course, no last name was mentioned, and so Frank Capra strolled up to collect the award before noticing the spotlight was not on him, but on Frank Lloyd instead. Frank Capra then had to slink back into his seat, and later described the moment in his memoir: “I wish I could have crawled under the rug like a miserable worm.” But, hey, he made up for it by winning Best Director three times in later years.

5.

Will Smith vs. Chris Rock

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Although one of the most recent bloopers, I doubt we’ll forget about this any time soon. During his presentation for Best Documentary Feature, Chris Rock made an inappropriate joke about Jada Smith being bald. No one expected, however, that Will Smith would storm the stage and slap Chris right across the face before returning to his seat. Of course, no one knew how to react, and we were all unsure as to whether it was a bit until Will shouts out “keep my wife’s name out your mouth.” Yep, Chris not knowing quite what to say afterwards was all of us, TBH.

6.

That “In Memoriam” blunder

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In the same year that we saw the La La Land chaos, the 2017 Oscars also included a picture of someone who is very much still alive during their “In Memoriam” reel. The image was supposed to be of costume designer Janet Patterson, but instead it was life-long friend and collaborator of Janet, Jan Chapman on the screen. 

7.

When a streaker decided to interrupt the broadcast

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During the 1974 Oscars, David Niven was ready to introduce Elizabeth Taylor to the stage who was tasked with presenting Best Picture. He was swiftly interrupted as a man (later known as Robert Opel) ran on stage completely naked. Yes, naked. David Niven made a joke of the situation, commenting “Isn’t it fascinating to think that the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings.” Ouch.

If you’re after another fun factoid: Robert Opel ran for US President years later, using slogans such as “nothing to hide” for his campaign.

8.

And finally, when 55 Oscar statuettes were stolen right before the ceremony

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In 2000, just two weeks before the show, 55 of the statuettes were taken from the loading dock in California. Of course, a panicked hunt began to try and find the tiny gold figures, and a hefty $50,000 reward for whoever found them. Willie Fulgear accidentally found them outside of a Korean supermarket in L.A., and was of course given the money in exchange for the trophies, as well as being invited to the ceremony.

*Phew*, I don’t know about you, but I need a breather before this year’s Oscars. Do you have anything else to add? Let me know in the comments below!