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WWE star and Hollywood actor John Cena is often praised for his dedication to his craft, going above and beyond to help promote the projects that he's involved in. At the Oscars on Sunday, Cena went buck-naked on stage to announce the winner of the Best Costume Design at the 96th Academy Awards.
Cena walked naked to present the award, wearing nothing but Birkenstock sandals and the award winner's envelope to cover his manhood. Host Jimmy Kimmel narrated how a streaker interrupted the Academy Awards in 1974 when actor David Niven was on stage, calling it the "craziest moment" in the award's history.
"Tonight is the 50th anniversary of what used to be the craziest moment of Oscar history. At the 46th Academy Awards in 1974, David Niven was in the middle of introducing Elizabeth Taylor when a nude man, a streaker, ran across the stage. Can you imagine if a nude man ran across the stage today? I said, can you imagine if a nude man ran across the stage today? Wouldn't that be crazy?"
As he completed the sentence, Cena peeped in from the side of the stage and tried to get Kimmel's attention. The talk show host seemed to have to put Cena up to the task of one-upping the streaker and walking out naked, but the WWE star changed his mind just before going on stage.
A naked John Cena and Jimmy Kimmel bicker on stage at the 2024 #Oscars pic.twitter.com/1JYd5qth6F
— The Hollywood Reporter (@THR) March 11, 2024
"Psst, Jimmy, come here," Cena told Kimmel. "I can't come here, do the thing," Kimmel replied, seemingly referring to them agreeing to Cena streaking on stage. The two then argued with each other, with Kimmel unhappy that Cena hadn't stuck to his promise.
"What's going on? You're supposed to run across the stage," Kimmel asked the WWE star. "I changed my mind. I don't want to do the streaker bit. I just don't feel right about it. It's an elegant event. Honestly, you should feel shame right now for suggesting a tasteless idea," Cena hit back at Kimmel.
Jorts are worse than naked, Kimmel to Cena
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Jimmy Kimmel argued that the bit was supposed to be a joke, which offended the buffed-up John Cena. "The male body is not a joke," said Cena. "Mine is," Kimmel retorted, which got a hearty laugh from the audience. Cena's wrestling attire, especially his jorts, has been the subject of ridicule in the past, which Kimmel referred to next to persuade Cena to do the bit.
"You wrestle naked, why not," asked Kimmel. "Dude, I don't wrestle naked, I wrestle in jorts," the WWE star countered. "Jorts are worse than naked," said Kimmel.
The impasse was finally resolved when Kimmel told Cena to give out the award and not streak on stage. A very naked Cena walked sideways, gingerly to the podium, holding the envelope to cover his private parts. "Costumes," Cena began, "they are so important. Maybe the most important thing there is."
The former WWE Champion complained that he wouldn't be able to open the envelope after which Kimmel came to Cena's aid. During the announcement of the nominations for the Best Costume Design award, Cena was given a quick costume change by Kimmel as he wore what seemed like a robe. The Best Costume Design award at the 2024 Oscars was presented to Holly Waddington for the movie "Poor Things."
Cena, who, for years, was protective of his image to cater to the PG-friendly WWE audience, has been much bolder in recent years in Hollywood. In an effort to promote his latest film "Ricky Stanicky," Cena went the extra mile recently by creating an OnlyFans account, while he also didn't shy away from sharing an X-rated response when asked about his favorite guilty pleasure. Cena, whose last WWE match took place at Crown Jewel in November, might make a WrestleMania 40 appearance next month, but that's based on his acting schedule.
