Top 20 Celebrities That Got EMBARRASSED at Award Shows

#20: Elizabeth Taylor

“58th Golden Globes Awards” (2001)

It may not be an official rule, but at the Golden Globes, being a little tipsy might as well be part of the dress code. Even legends like Elizabeth Taylor aren’t immune to the award show’s loose vibes. In 2001, when Taylor came on stage to present Best Motion Picture Drama, she appeared slightly disoriented. She slurred her words right from the start and almost announced the winner before reading the nominees. Fortunately, the audience managed to stop her before she could open the envelope. She was still visibly confused. Thankfully, Dick Clark stepped in to guide her in the right direction. It’s one of the most hilarious moments at the Golden Globes, but also a little awkward.

#19: Brandon Block

“20th BRIT Awards” (2000)

This must’ve stung for Brandon Block. At the 2000 BRIT Awards, Ronnie Wood and Thora Birch were presenting Best Soundtrack Album when Block staggered on stage, thinking he’d been invited for an award. But he hadn’t. His friends had misinformed him, and being intoxicated, he believed them, only to be guided away by bouncers. You’d think it would end there, but things got even more dramatic. After Wood hurled an insulting remark at him, Block slipped out of the security guards’ grasp to confront the guitarist. A heated exchange followed before Block was finally escorted out. Even we felt secondhand embarrassment. Block jokes about it now, but it remains one of the most replayed humiliation clips in BRITs history.

#18: Sofia Vergara

“64th Primetime Emmy Awards” (2012)

A wardrobe malfunction is never funny, especially when it happens on one of the biggest nights on television. Unfortunately for Sofia Vergara, she suffered this mishap at the 2012 Emmy Awards. Just minutes before “Modern Family” won Best Comedy Series, the zipper on her dress split completely open in the back. Luckily, her boyfriend noticed it before she walked onstage. Imagine the embarrassment if she had stepped up to accept the award with a ripped dress! Thankfully, none of that happened as she got it fixed in time to join her co-stars. Vergara laughed about it later, but admitted she nearly had a heart attack when it happened. Who wouldn’t? Thanks to her tweets, fans saw exactly how bad it was.

#17: Naomi Watts

“21st Screen Actors Guild Awards” (2015)

Sometimes, celebs have no idea what’s awaiting them from the moment they head up stage. If it’s not their outfits betraying them, it might be someone else’s. Naomi Watts learned that the hard way. During the 2015 SAG Awards, Watts and the cast of “Birdman” were called to accept the award for Best Ensemble in a Motion Picture. As Naomi attempted to make a speech, she tripped over Emma Stone’s luxurious outfit. For a split second, everyone thought she was going to fall face flat on live TV, but the actress managed to steady herself, with a little help from Edward Norton. Thankfully, there was no disastrous outcome—just some harmless embarrassment.

#16: Ian Somerhalder & Ariana Grande

“16th Teen Choice Awards” (2014)

Accident or not, this one’s super awkward. At the 2014 Teen Choice Awards, Ariana Grande strolled on stage to receive an award after Ian Somerhalder announced her as the winner. As he leaned in to give her a friendly kiss on the cheek, Ariana turned her head at the wrong time, making it look like she was dodging his kiss. Maybe she was going for a hug instead or wanted the kiss on the other cheek. Whatever the reason, the whole thing played out in an embarrassing way, especially for Somerhalder. To make things worse, the clip went viral and the internet did what it does best: freeze-frame it, replay it, and turn it into a meme.

#15: Warren Beatty & Faye Dunaway

“89th Academy Awards” (2017)

Sometimes Hollywood saves its biggest plot twists for real life. And the 2017 Oscars delivered one of the wildest ever. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway walked on stage to announce Best Picture, but things went off the rails fast. Instead of the correct envelope, Beatty had a duplicate of the Best Actress card, which Emma Stone had won. While Beatty hesitated, Dunaway read “La La Land” as the winner. The cast rushed onstage and even began their acceptance speech before everything came to a halt. The real card revealed that “Moonlight” had won, and Jordan Horowitz had to announce it himself. Ouch! It was embarrassing for everyone involved. Even Dunaway admitted two months later it was a moment she hadn’t recovered from.

#14: Steve Harvey

“64th Miss Universe Pageant” (2015)

If someone says you pulled a “Steve Harvey” at an award show, they’re talking about his infamous mistake at the 2015 Miss Universe pageant. When it was time to announce the winner, Harvey declared Ariadna Gutiérrez of Colombia as Miss Universe. She even stood on stage, was crowned, and waved, only for Harvey to return to admit he’d read the card wrong. The actual winner was Pia Wurtzbach of the Philippines, so Gutiérrez had to hand over the crown and sash. It was heartbreaking. She later broke down in tears. Harvey later revealed that it was also a painful experience for him and the worst week of his life. Though, it wasn’t entirely his fault. A last minute change caused the chaos.

#13: Jennifer Lawrence

“85th Academy Awards” (2013)

Don’t we just love Jennifer Lawrence for how relatable she is? Her fall at the 2013 Oscars is a big reason people still call her that. When she walked up the stairs to accept her Best Actress Oscar, she tripped on her gown. It looked painfully awkward, especially in front of a huge audience. But she laughed it off, was honest about how embarrassed she was and still gave her heartfelt speech. A year later, when she fell again, this time on the red carpet, Lawrence worried it might look staged. Years later, she could look at the fall fondly, but for a long time it was very sensitive.

#12: John Travolta

“36th MTV Video Music Awards” (2019)

Well, who do we blame this one on? At the 2019 MTV VMAs, Taylor Swift and her crew went on stage to accept the “Video of the Year” award. John Travolta was supposed to give the Moon Person statue to Swift, but it looked like he nearly handed it to drag performer Jade Jolie instead. Awkward? Definitely. Funny and harmless? Also yes. We’ll just chalk it up to a simple case of mistaken identity mixed with award show chaos. But then again, this wasn’t Travolta’s first blunder on an award show. He had reportedly even asked Queen Latifah to read the card to avoid making another mistake. Yet somehow, a mishap happened anyway. Way to go Travolta—just another adorable entry in your award-show mishap collection.

#11: Emma Stone

“74th Golden Globe Awards” (2017)

That awkward moment you lean in for a congratulatory hug only to realize you misread the situation. That was Emma Stone at the 2017 Golden Globes. She would win the award for Best Actress, but the night also had something awkwardly painful in store for her. When Damien Chazelle won Best Original Screenplay and everyone jumped to celebrate, Stone moved in for what she thought was a warm embrace from the director. Except… he was actually turning to kiss his girlfriend. Stone realized the mix-up instantly and pulled back, but not without drawing attention. You can see her cringing and muttering about how weird it was, making it clear she was thoroughly embarrassed.

#10: Nicki Minaj

“31st MTV Video Music Awards” (2014)

We nearly got Janet Jackson 2.0 here. During the 2014 VMAs, Nicki Minaj was performing “Bang Bang” with Ariana Grande and Jessie J when she suffered a major wardrobe malfunction. She could be seen strutting into view holding her black dress together on her chest and stomach. She later revealed on “Ellen” that she was completely naked under the dress, as she had just changed from her “Anaconda” outfit. And when she realized that her dress had malfunctioned, she “thought [she] died.” She was clearly embarrassed and probably extremely nervous, but she pulled it off like a total pro. The show must go on! And the next year she famously called out Miley Cyrus on stage, cementing her legacy in VMA history.

#9: Jacqueline Bisset

“71st Golden Globe Awards” (2014)

When it comes to the strangest award show speeches, Jacqueline Bisset’s Golden Globes speech has to be up there. Bisset won the Best Supporting Actress award at the 71st Golden Globes in 2014, and her acceptance was doomed from the start. First, she was placed about five blocks away from the stage, prompting a painfully elongated and awkward walk to accept her award. And Bisset was so overwhelmed and emotional that she could barely string a sentence together. Her speech was meandering, there were long stretches of silence, she went on a tangent about forgiveness, and talked through the exit music. She later admitted that she was totally flabbergasted and couldn’t remember what she’d said.

#8: Lily Allen

“GQ Awards” (2008)

While co-presenting at the GQ Awards, Lily Allen and Elton John got into a rather awkward back and forth. After Lily said that they had come to “a very special point in the evening,” Elton asked her if she was going to have another drink, causing Lily to swear at him. Following some more bitter banter, Lily told him to “f off,” resulting in some awkward laughs from the audience. Lily later defended herself on MySpace, saying they’d just been joking, and that: “I’m 23. It was an awards ceremony. I drank the free champagne. How awful of me.” Cold British banter or not, it certainly made for some awkward viewing.

#7: Katy Perry

“Premios MTV Latinoamérica” (2008)

Maybe playing around in cake isn’t as fun as it looks. After performing at the MTV Latin America Awards, Katy Perry was making her way off stage when she began slipping in the prop cake. And this wasn’t just some normal, everyday slip – this was like something straight out of a cartoon, complete with wild limb flailing, desperate attempts to stay upright, and repeated falls. We can practically hear the goofy sound effects. She took it in stride by laughing and waving at the audience. But then she kept falling. And falling. She eventually accepted her fate and simply crawled off stage in defeat while the music played her off.

#6: Kristen Stewart

“18th MTV Movie Awards” (2009)

Kristen is one of the most endearingly awkward celebrities in Hollywood. And she knows it. While accepting the MTV Movie Award for Best Female Performance, Kristen fumbled the Golden Popcorn statue and dropped it on the floor. She covered her mouth in embarrassment, and Robert Pattinson could be seen laughing from the audience. She proceeded to thank the audience for “dealing with her” and admitted that she was just as awkward as they thought she would be. We mean, yeah. But at least we got a few good laughs out of it!

#5: Christine Lahti

“55th Golden Globe Awards” (1998)

Coming out of the washroom to a crowd of waiting people will never not be awkward. But it’s even more awkward if you had just won a major award. At the 55th Golden Globe Awards in 1998, Christine Lahti won Best Actress in a Drama Series for her work in “Chicago Hope.” Unfortunately, she was indisposed in the ladies’ room at the time of announcement. Luckily, Robin Williams was there to save the day. He entertained the crowd with some jokes until a visibly flustered and embarrassed Lahti made her way to the stage, where she proceeded to dry her hands on a towel. You know what they say – when you gotta go, you gotta go.

#4: Madonna

“35th Brit Awards” (2015)

Adorably slipping in cake is one thing. Being violently yanked off stage is quite another. During a dramatic cape unfurling, the cape got caught around Madonna’s neck and violently yanked her off the platform. Physically, Madonna was fine. Her mental state is another story. She gets up with an expression that reads equal parts embarrassment and frustration, and her voice can briefly be heard shaking as she composes herself. She later told Jonathan Ross that she “created a horror show for everyone” and suffered minor whiplash from the fall. If anything, this ordeal just proves that Madonna is a queen and a consummate professional.

#3: Mel Gibson

“73rd Golden Globe Awards” (2016)

Here’s an idea – don’t fight back against Ricky Gervais. Just accept the barb and move on. Unfortunately, Mel Gibson learned that lesson the hard way. After getting roasted by Gervais yet again at the 2016 Golden Globes, Gibson took to the stage and jabbed back at Gervais. This was the death of him. Gervais came back out, approached the mic, and asked Gibson what “sugar tits” meant, alluding to Gibson’s alleged comment towards an arresting female police sergeant. Gibson was quick to shoo Gervais away, and he was left visibly flustered as the audience laughed and gasped in shock. And with that, Gibson was utterly KO’d. Alan Cummings’s expression says it all.

#2: Miguel

“20th Billboard Music Awards” (2013)

Never, EVER jump over a crowd. Not only is it a lawsuit waiting to happen, but you seriously risk injuring a patron. Unfortunately, both of these outcomes came to fruition at the 2013 Billboard Music Awards. For some bizarre reason, Miguel decided to leap over a small pit of people, kicking one woman straight in the face and curb stomping another into the stage. He is clearly embarrassed, as he turns and hugs the woman he thought he kicked. It’s a nice gesture. Unfortunately, the two he actually kicked had already scurried off in pain. One woman, Khyati Shah, was suspected of suffering “a neurological head injury,” according to her lawyer. The other, Cindy Tsai, later sued Miguel for medical bills and lost wages.

#1: Taylor Swift & Kanye West

“26th MTV Video Music Awards” (2009)

The 2009 VMA fiasco is historic. As you all know, Kanye stormed the stage, interrupted Taylor Swift, delegitimized her award, and claimed that Beyoncé should have won. The incident proved to be monumentally embarrassing for the acclaimed rapper. Not only was he booed off the stage, but many people within the entertainment industry chastised his actions and criticized his character. Even Barack Obama got in on the action, calling Kanye “a jackass.” Sure, he didn’t seem too embarrassed in the moment, and he’s not really one to stew in his past mistakes. But this was utterly humiliating, and it did irreparable damage to his reputation.

Which is the most awkward moment for these celebs? Let us know in the comment section.