40 Controversial Moments From Awards Shows That Viewers Won’t Ever Forget

On April 2, 1974, Opel apparently posed as a journalist to gain entry to the stage at the 46th Academy Awards at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles. He ran naked past David Niven flashing a peace sign while Niven was introducing Elizabeth Taylor.
After breaking into laughter momentarily, Niven regained his composure, turned to the audience and quipped, "Well, ladies and gentlemen, that was almost bound to happen... But isn't it fascinating to think that probably the only laugh that man will ever get in his life is by stripping off and showing his shortcomings?"

In 1973, Marlon Brando won Best Actor for The Godfather, but he famously sent activist and National Native American Affirmative Image Committee president Sacheen Littlefeather to decline the award on his behalf.

Parasite's Best Picture win was a huge deal: it marked the first time a non-English language film took home the top honor. When the cast and crew headed onstage to accept the award, which was one of six the movie won through the night, coproducer Kwak Sin-ae first took the mic and spoke for 45 seconds before turning things over to Miky Lee, the film's other producer.

But before Lee got to deliver her speech, the lights went down on the stage and cameras focused on Jane Fonda, who was slated to deliver the night's closing remarks. The audience was instantly outraged, and stars like Tom Hanks and Charlize Theron, who were sitting in the front row, started chanting "Up! Up!" to persuade the showrunners to turn the attention back to Parasite.

Luckily the cheers worked, and Lee was able to deliver her remarks.

In 1965, Julie Andrews won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Motion Picture — Comedy or Musical for her work in Mary Poppins. While accepting her award, Andrews shaded My Fair Lady producer Jack Warner by thanking him for making this possible. Despite her success playing the role of Eliza Doolittle on Broadway, Warner notably didn't cast Andrews in the film adaptation and instead went with Audrey Hepburn, citing that they needed "a name." Ultimately, Andrews and Hepburn were pitted against each other all awards season, with Andrews winning both the Globe and Oscar for Mary Poppins.

The audience went along with it until they saw a very confused Thomas. The broadcast reportedly quickly cut to a commercial break and then Thomas gave her speech when the show returned. According to the LA Times, he was later arrested backstage.

During the 2014 Emmys, Bruce Rosenblum, who was then president of the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences, gave a speech about the state of the television industry. As a joke to get more viewers interested in the speech, Sofía Vergara stood on a rotating pedestal and showed off her curves as Rosenblum delivered his remarks. The joke instantly caused controversy, with some saying it promoted objectification. Despite the backlash, Vergara stood by the joke. When asked if she thought the stunt was sexist, Vergara said, "I think it's absolutely the opposite. It means that somebody can be hot and also be funny and make fun of herself."

In 2009, Taylor Swift won Best Female Video for "You Belong with Me" at the MTV Video Music Awards. While on stage accepting her award, Kanye West notably went on stage, took the microphone, and said, "You, Taylor, I'm really happy for you. I'mma let you finish, but Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time." Beyoncé was nominated in the same category for "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)." Ye left the stage and was reportedly removed from the venue. This moment kicked off a decades-spanning feud between Swift and Ye.

While he was singing, the camera notably panned the audience to some of the celebs he was mentioning, like Charlize Theron. Women both in the audience and at home were angered and "shocked."

In 2022, Chris Rock was on stage at the Oscars to present Best Documentary Feature. He made a joke directed at Jada Pinkett Smith, who was sitting in the audience with Will Smith, comparing her shaved head to that of Demi Moore's character in G.I. Jane. Moments later, Smith got up on stage and slapped Rock. He then returned to his seat but continued yelling at Rock, saying, "Keep my wife's name out your mouth!" About 40 minutes later, Smith won his first Oscar for Best Actor for his work in King Richard.

Though initially embarrassed, Jennifer Lawrence quickly laughed it off and began thanking everyone: "Thank you so much," she said. "This is crazy. You’re only standing because I fell and you feel bad. That was embarrassing." She also thanked her co-stars, crew, and team, before wishing Amour star Emmanuelle Riva a happy 86th birthday.

In 2000, Jennifer Lopez notably attended the Grammy Awards wearing a green Versace silk chiffon dress that was cut very low. At the time, the dress was considered pretty scandalous, with Lopez's then-stylist reportedly trying to stop her from wearing it because other celebs had already worn it. "It caused, you know, quite a stir," Lopez recalled to Vogue. Lopez wearing the dress literally led to the invention of Google Images, with people wanting to SEE the look, not just read about it.

In 2004, Evanescence won Best New Artist at the Grammys, beating out 50 Cent, Fountains of Wayne, Heather Headley, and Sean Paul. While they were on stage accepting the award, 50 Cent got up on stage, too, and crossed behind the band. Lead singer Amy Lee shrugged it off and thanked him before jumping into an acceptance speech. While getting his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2020, 50 Cent alluded to still being annoyed at this loss, saying, "You got the largest debut hip hop album [but] you don't got no Best New Artist trophy. The Best New Artist, they gave that s**t to Evanescence."