- 7 hours ago
Grab the eye bleach — some moments in pop culture are so painfully awkward, we wish we could unsee them! Join us as we count down the most cringe-worthy moments in entertainment history we'd all love to forget! From tone-deaf celebrity endorsements to unforgettable live TV disasters, these are the moments that make you want to crawl under your couch... unlike Tom Cruise, who jumped on one!
Category
🗞
NewsTranscript
00:01Imagine there's no heaven. It's easy if you try.
00:08Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks from the most awkward, overplayed, and cringe-inducing moments in
00:15entertainment history that we wish would disappear from our memories.
00:18Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you, I'ma let you finish, but Beyonce had one of the best videos of
00:25all time.
00:26Number 10, Kendall Jenner's Pepsi protest ad.
00:29Remember when Kendall Jenner tried to cut a cucumber?
00:32I'm not a good cutter, so don't zoom in on me. I'm not professional whatsoever.
00:37Do you also remember when she tried to make soda the solution to social injustice?
00:41Well, in April 2017, Pepsi released the now infamous commercial showing Jenner handing a Pepsi can to a police officer
00:48during a staged protest, supposedly promoting unity.
00:58The ad was immediately condemned for trivializing real-world movements like Black Lives Matter, turning a serious issue into an
01:05awkward marketing ploy.
01:06The video has since become a viral punchline, and the benchmark for tone-deaf celebrity endorsements.
01:11It remains a cringe moment that reminds us how badly good intentions can backfire when divorced from reality.
01:25Number 9, Britney's Gimme More VMA flop.
01:28Following a turbulent time of personal struggles, Britney Spears' much-hyped comeback at the 2007 MTV Video Music Awards in
01:35Las Vegas was meant to be triumphant.
01:37Unfortunately, her Gimme More performance went disastrously wrong.
01:41Opening the show, Spears appeared sluggish as she went through the motions of an awkwardly choreographed routine.
01:55Making matters worse, her lip-syncing errors were impossible to ignore.
01:59Yep, while fans hoped for a memorable return, they instead got a painfully awkward live TV moment that would go
02:05on to be widely ridiculed.
02:06Given all she's been through, it would be best if we let this ill-conceived moment fade from memory.
02:198. Fergie's Jazzy National Anthem
02:23On February 18, 2018, Fergie performed the national anthem at the NBA All-Star Game in
02:28Los Angeles. The issue? The Black Eyed Peas singer decided to give it an unconventional
02:32jazzy twist.
02:40At the twilight's last gleaming
02:47Fergie's slowed-down, sultry delivery not only confused the audience, but left several
02:51players and celebrities in the stands visibly bewildered. Naturally, the performance quickly
02:56became a social media sensation. People questioned her artistic choices, and the rendition was
03:01widely mocked.
03:02In the rocket's red glare, the bombs bursting in air
03:15Heck, even Fergie acknowledged the criticism, calling it a creative risk. Ultimately, the
03:21moment reaffirmed why some classics are better left untouched.
03:35Number 7. Dakota Johnson calling out Ellen
03:38Interview moments don't get more awkward than this one. You see, during a 2019 appearance
03:43on her now-defunct talk show, Ellen DeGeneres jokingly suggested she hadn't been invited
03:47to actress Dakota Johnson's 30th birthday party. Johnson, however, corrected Ellen in
03:57real time, stating she, in fact, was invited to her party. The clip circulated for its cringe-inducing
04:03mix of icy correction and celebrity mishap.
04:05Last time I was on the show, last year, you gave me a bunch of s**t about not inviting
04:10you, but I didn't even know you wanted to be invited.
04:13It's moments like this that perfectly captures the unpredictability of talk shows. It's
04:17also the type of exchange that makes you wince with secondhand discomfort.
04:20It was probably in Malibu. That's too far for me to go to.
04:23Yeah.
04:23Yeah, it was.
04:24Number 6. Katy Perry's Space Trip
04:26Liftoff. New Shepard has cleared the tower.
04:31When pop star Katy Perry boarded the Blue Origin rocket for a short subordial flight,
04:35the world collectively rolled their eyes. Perry, who joined an all-female crew, decided
04:40to sing as she floated in zero gravity while cameras recorded every moment. While the flight
04:44was historic, the media and public reaction focused on the theatricality rather than
04:49the achievement, and the celebrity grandstanding led to plenty of social media memes.
04:53Think about how many resources went into putting these women into space. For what? For what?
04:59What was the marketing there? And then to try to make it, like, I'm disgusted. Literally,
05:03I'm disgusted.
05:04Despite her best intentions, Perry's space adventure became a cringeworthy viral moment. One that's
05:09remembered less for its scientific significance, and more for its over-the-top awkwardness.
05:13Did we mention she kissed the ground upon landing?
05:16Everything is fine, great.
05:18Number 5. Kanye West Interrupting Taylor Swift
05:21This is the mic grab of all mic grabs.
05:24Thank you so much for giving me a chance to win a VMA award.
05:28At the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, Taylor Swift was in the middle of accepting Best Female Video
05:33when Kanye West suddenly stormed the stage and took the microphone, insisting that Beyonce deserved the award instead.
05:39Yo Taylor, I'm really happy for you, I'ma let you finish, but Beyonce had one of the best videos of
05:46all time.
05:48The interruption left Swift and everyone else visibly stunned, as Taylor's big celebratory moment instantly became a tense and awkward
05:55viewing experience.
05:56The clip has been replayed endlessly ever since, becoming a prime example of pop culture cringe.
06:01Sadly, this would end up being just a drop in the bucket, when it comes to head-scratching Kanye West
06:06moments.
06:07Every human being has something of value that they brought to the table, especially Hitler. How about that one?
06:14Number 4. Ashley Simpson's SNL Jig
06:22Few live TV mishaps have been as painfully embarrassing as Ashley Simpson's SNL performance in October of 2004.
06:29While attempting to perform her second song of the night, the wrong vocal track started to play, revealing the Pieces
06:34of Me singer was lip-syncing.
06:36On a Monday, I am waiting. Tuesday, I'm fading.
06:48So, what did she do?
06:50Well, Simpson proceeded to perform an awkward little jig before leaving the stage, abandoning her bandmates in the process.
06:56Clips of the incident spread online for years, and it has since become a cultural shorthand for cringe-worthy live
07:01television mistakes.
07:02hasn't Ashley suffered enough at this point?
07:05For me, it was the most humbling experience of my life,
07:08because the whole world thinks everything that you just put your heart and soul into writing is a joke, and
07:15that sucked.
07:17Number 3. Anne Frank, a Believer?
07:24Okay, so pop sensation Justin Bieber undoubtedly has a massive fan base,
07:28but in one infamously self-centered moment, he took that idea a step too far.
07:33You see, while visiting the Anne Frank house in Amsterdam in April 2013,
07:37a young Justin wrote that he hoped Anne Frank would have been a Believer,
07:40the term used to describe his loyal fan base.
07:42Here's what he wrote, and I quote,
07:44Truly inspiring to be able to come here, Anne was a great girl, hopefully she would have been a Believer.
07:50Naturally, the comment was widely criticized for being incredibly tone-deaf.
07:54Plus, the phrasing made it sound like he thought his fandom trumped history.
07:57It stands as one of the most jaw-droppingly out-of-touch celebrity moments,
08:01one Justin himself likely wishes could vanish from public consciousness.
08:05And he's talking about Bieber, Fever, I mean, come on, man, it's, yeah, right, give me a break.
08:10Number 2. Gal Gadot and Friends singing Imagine.
08:14Imagine there's no heaven.
08:17It's easy if you try.
08:22At the height of the worldwide pandemic,
08:23Wonder Woman actress Gal Gadot decided to assemble a group of celebrities to cheer everyone up.
08:28To do that, the likes of Kristen Wiig, Jimmy Fallon, Amy Adams, Will Ferrell,
08:33and others all sang portions of John Lennon's iconic song Imagine from their mansions.
08:38No need for greed and hunger.
08:43Brotherhood of man.
08:45Needless to say, the video landed like a lead balloon.
08:49Apparently, multi-millionaires crooning about no possessions while people were losing everything,
08:53including loved ones, wasn't such a good idea.
08:56A symbol of how out of touch some celebrities were during this troubling time,
09:00we can only imagine a timeline where this didn't happen.
09:13Before we continue, check out this single from Sound Mojo's Adia,
09:17Songs from Iran, reimagining Persian melodies as modern rock, metal, and pop songs.
09:23Check out the full track and album below.
09:26Maybe in another place in time
09:31We'd still be dancing
09:35Your hand in mine
09:40Number 1. Tom Cruise jumping on Oprah's couch
09:43In May 2005, Hollywood megastar Tom Cruise appeared in The Oprah Winfrey Show
09:48with an unadulterated display of unfiltered enthusiasm.
09:50You see, the Mission Impossible star was smitten with his then-girlfriend, Katie Holmes.
09:55And how did he profess his love on the daytime program?
09:58By jumping on Oprah's couch, of course.
10:00So this is interesting, Tom.
10:01We've never seen you behave this way before.
10:03I know.
10:04Have you ever felt this way before?
10:09Tom's energy was so intense and unexpected
10:11that it became an instant lightning rod for late-night jokes,
10:15parodies, and decades-spanning embarrassment.
10:17Cruise's exuberance is the now-quintessential symbol
10:20of over-the-top celebrity behavior,
10:22and no couch has ever fully recovered
10:24from the intensity of that public display of affection.
10:30What's the cringiest pop culture moment
10:32you want removed from existence?
10:33Drop your pics in the comments below.
10:35To be continued...
10:35...
10:35...
Comments