Every year, the entertainment industry ceremoniously gathers in a grand endeavor of self-congratulation. The Academy Awards, more commonly referred to as “The Oscars” celebrate the work produced by film artists each year. From an objective standpoint, it is quite frivolous, grown adults campaigning arduously for recognition and a golden trophy; but it is nevertheless an entertaining event that frequently becomes comical in its own self-indulgence. Remember always, that while you work zealously to make ends meet, there is always an overpaid actor or director who has it much more difficult, languishing in the pursuit of laurels proffered on primetime television.
Still, whenever one gathers such a constellation of melodramatics together, it is bound to produce fireworks. Over the years, a number of astonishing moments have transpired within the hallowed framework of “The Oscars,” five of which we’ll enumerate here. Below are the 5 most shocking moments in Oscars history.
The Slap (2022)
Who: Will Smith, Jada Pinkett-Smith and Chris Rock.
What: Chris Rock jaunted out onto stage to plaintively deliver an award for Best Documentary Feature. With such a prosaic category, one could hardly imagine anything particularly outlandish to occur. Rock, as a comedian is wont to do, began riffing and delivering several spontaneous jokes. Little did he realize there was one person, Jada Pinkett-Smith, in the audience; whose chiding might elicit unanticipated bellicosity.
Rock made a joke comparing the physical appearance of Pinkett-Smith to GI Jane, the fictional bald infantry soldier played by Demi Moore. Pinkett-Smith, unbeknownst to Rock, had been diagnosed with alopecia and consequently bore a bare scalp. She still looked radiant, but displayed physical upset at the joke made toward her. Will Smith, her histrionic husband, felt compelled to respond. He marched to the stage, wound his arm up, and passionately whooped Chris Rock across the face in front of millions of viewers. If you’ve ever wondered what physical assault in the workplace looks like, take a gander at Smith’s actions on YouTube.
Why: Insecurity? Dutiful protection from a husband whose wife had been publicly slighted? The motivations for such immature behavior can only be speculated upon, but Smith’s eventual Oscar victory that night was completely overshadowed by his assault on Rock. Whatever the case, it was spectacular television. A celebrity on celebrity physical clash? An actor with a net worth of millions of dollars desecrating his public image at the behest of a wife who had openly scorned him with her own promiscuous behavior? Microwave the popcorn.
And The Winner Is…(2017) – Oscars History
Who: Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway.
What: La La Land, a musical about people dancing in LA, was the odds-on favorite to win in numerous categories in 2017. Hollywood can’t help but fellate themselves, viewers reasoned. In an astonishing turn of events, however, Moonlight, a coming-of-age story about a young Black man in Miami, was voted as the “Best Picture” winner by the Academy.
That message, however, was not properly delivered to the two stars announcing the recipient of the “Best Picture” category. Warren Beatty was handed the wrong envelope, which he realized, and then promptly transferred to Faye Dunaway to deliver the apocryphal news. Warren Beatty! What a gentleman.
The entire production crew of La La Land exuberantly made their way to the stage, only to realize midway through their acceptance speech they had not actually won. If it weren’t so funny, it’d actually be quite tragic: With each successive producer of La La Land basking in momentary glory, expressing gratitude for loved ones, only to then have it sharply ripped away once the full realization of the blunder that had been made was processed.
Why: It was the wrong bloody envelope! Beatty explained his actions after the award had been given to Moonlight, which throws his actions into even sharper relief. He can, after all, blame the transgression entirely on Dunaway. Beatty was given an envelope which announced Emma Stone as the winner of “Best Actress” for La La Land and was confused about what to do. So, naturally, he decided to make Dunaway a scapegoat.
Sacheen Littlefeather (1973)
Who: Marlon Brando and Sacheen Littlefeather
What: Rather than accepting the award for “Best Actor” himself, Marlon Brando instead sent Native American Sacheen Littlefeather to accept the award in his stead. Demurely, she read from Brando’s composed script, both advocating for the rights of Native Americans and rejecting the award.
John Wayne reacted as a only a swaggering American cowboy would, attempting to assault Littlefeather off-stage. It was an odd melodrama, all around.
Why: Native American rights? If that was the reason, it nevertheless presented strange optics: A White man instructing a Native American to articulate a prescribed speech. If it advanced the cause of native nations, it was performed in a peculiar fashion.
An Ambiguous Definition Of Consent (2003) – Oscars History
Who: Halle Berry and Adrien Brody
What: In 2003, Brody was riding high, having just won an Oscar for “Best Actor” for his role in Roman Polanski’s The Pianist. The adrenaline must have been surging, for when he joined the stage with Halle Berry to present an award, he grabbed her, kissing her without her consent.
The dramatics apparently were not staged in the slightest. According to Berry: “That was not planned! I knew nothing about it. I was like, what the f*** is happening right now? And because I was there the year before and I know the feeling of being out of body, I just f****** went with it.”
Why: I suppose when the impulse grabs you, you’ve got to embrace it.
One Ring To Rule Them All (2004)
Who: Peter Jackson and the LOTR production crew and cast
What: Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, adapted from the acclaimed novel by JRR Tolkien, was a feature film from the fantasy genre, a domain seldom honored by the Oscars. In 2004, the film was surprisingly nominated for 11 total awards. Few anticipated that the film would merit the reception of all 11 honorifics, but it did, executing a sweep of every category. Such a feat has never, before or after, been accomplished at the Oscars.
Why: The Return of the King was a tremendous film and the “Lord of the Rings” a stupendous filmmaking feat. The fact that it received every award for which it was nominated was more a consequence of the clear masterfulness of the franchise, rather than the sole film itself.
Incestual Proclivities? (2000) – Oscars History
Who: Angelina Jolie and James Haven
What: In 2000, Angelina Jolie was nominated for Best Actress in Girl Interrupted. Upon reception of her honorifics, Jolie proceeded to gratuitously thank her brother, James Haven, exclaiming “I’m in shock and I’m so in love with my brother right now.”
In and of itself, Jolie’s comments wouldn’t have been transgressive. However, the red flags waving during her acceptance speech were compounded afterward, when she proceeded to kiss her brother on the mouth after the ceremony. Haven attempted to staunch the ensuing media frenzy, by commenting that the kiss was something “simple and lovely.”
That did little to remove the lasting cultural impression that Jolie was a bit zany, which accorded with the role she was nominated for.
Why: Jolie’s antics furthered the sentiment that Hollywood, for all its influence in promulgating culture, was quintessentially removed from the cultural norms of most people. Incest is not a common denominator among most viewing audiences.
The Invasion of South Park (2000)
Who: Matt Stone and Trey Parker
What: Another spectacle in 2000 at the Oscars involved Southpark creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone, who were nominated for their original song “Blame Canada,” an anomaly in Oscars History. Having already been anointed with a reputation as unrepentant firebrands, Parker and Stone elected to lean into their own mythology, sporting dresses reminiscent of Gwyneth Paltrow and Jennifer Lopez.
The two initially conceptualized entering the awards ceremony dressed as ducks, but grew concerned over whether that would prevent admission.
Why: Who would expect anything less from the creators of productions like South Park, The Book of Mormon, or Team America? Stone and Parker are, by nature, satirists. It wasn’t altogether shocking they would seek to lampoon the self-importance of the Oscars.
The Bard Triumphs Over WWII (1999) – Oscars History
Who: Steven Spielberg, the Saving Private Ryan cast
What: In 1999, the odds-on-favorite to capture the “Best Picture” award was Saving Private Ryan, a film about the perils and sacrifices endured during WWII on the Western Front. Directed by Steven Spielberg, the film received 13 nominations and was awarded with enormous praise from film critics. Shakespeare in Love, by contrast, was a tepidly-funded film, nevertheless bolstered by the influence of Miramax and Harvey Weinstein.
Shakespeare in Love captured the award for “Best Picture,” leaving popular audiences and critical audiences floored.
Why: In retrospect, the theft of the award by a middling film displays the influence of external actors in Hollywood, none more notorious than Harvey Weinstein.
For further information on the Oscars, reference the following article:
Top 10 Highest Grossing Best Picture Winning Movies