During this year's Oscars, actor John Cena appeared onstage at the Dolby Theatre naked, with nothing but an envelope between him and the audience. Cena, who was presenting the Oscar for Best Costume Design, was paying homage to the 1974 Oscar ceremony where a man ran naked across the stage. But even though the writers found the bit funny, social media users were divided.
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"At the 46th Academy Awards, 1974, David Niven was in the middle of introducing Elizabeth Taylor when a nude man — a streaker — ran across the stage," Oscars host Jimmy Kimmel said. "Can you imagine if a nude man ran across the stage today?"
He made the joke again before Cena's head popped out from behind a curtain. He told Kimmel that he "changed my mind" about the stunt, saying he didn't "feel right" being naked during such an "elegant event."
"Honestly, you should feel shame right now for suggesting such a tasteless idea," Cena scolded the host before saying that "the male body is not a joke." Eventually he made his way to the stage, wearing nothing but a pair of Birkenstock sandals and holding a giant envelope with the winner's name in front of his private parts. "I can’t open the envelope," he said after announcing the nominees.
While a video of the nominees played, Cena changed into a toga-like costume.
The Oscars started at 7 p.m. EST, which is considered "prime time" by networks, but Cena's award presentation didn't come until much later in the broadcast, when most children should have been in bed. The envelope was also large enough to obscure anything that could be considered obscene.
In the past, some nominees have brought their children with them to the ceremony. And this year, one of the children from winning short documentary The Last Repair Shop was on hand to accept their award. But the theater is also very big, and kids never sit in the front row, which is reserved for the night's biggest stars.
Some people understood the joke that Cena was apart of, and appreciated how the show flashed back to something that happened 50 years ago during the live broadcast. They also enjoyed the fact that the show didn't take itself seriously, even if it was only for a minute.
One person actually thought to share the original clip of the streaker to give context to the joke. At least this time, the show knew what was happening, unlike in 1974 when everyone was caught off guard and had to act quickly.
Cena is a well-known comedic actor who doesn't take himself seriously, which is a big hit with kids who may also know him as a professional wrestler.
If seeing Cena naked onstage did anything, it made most of us feel like we need to step up our game in the gym. Some people weren't offended by seeing his body, they were simply jealous! Cena's abs are really quite impressive…
That's a great question. Since stunts like this are usually planned weeks in advance, it would give Cena time to put in a couple extra hours at the gym since he knew that millions of people were going to see him naked on TV, and also that the video would be making its way around social media like wildfire.
