With Oscar season on the horizon, many looked back on one of the ceremony’s most memorable moments, which was the Oscars Selfie that talk show host Ellen DeGeneres took in 2014. The selfie featured A-listers such as Brad Pitt, Meryl Streep, Changing Tatum, Bradley Cooper, Angelina Jolie, Jennifer Lawrence, Jared Leto, and Lupita Nyong’o. It was often regarded as one of the most memorable selfies ever taken.
However, ever since the selfie was taken, the lives of these A-listers seem to have gone off the rails. A recent article by the New York Post opined that the ‘Oscar Selfie Curse’ was a real thing and that most of the actors present in the selfie have either been canceled, faced career setbacks, or have had disastrous personal lives. Fans, however, are annoyed with this narrative and are not buying into the Oscar Curse.
The Oscars Selfie Was A Pop Culture Defining Moment
The Oscars have had many memorable moments in the past decade. From ‘Envelope Gate’ to the ‘Slap Heard Around The World’, the prestigious awards ceremony has always given the world talking points and plenty of fodder to make memes about. Incredible moments such as Leonardo DiCaprio winning his first Oscar to Brie Larson hugging s*xual assault survivors have been captured at the stage.
One of the most memorable moments of the Oscars occurred ten years ago at the 2014 Academy Awards. Noted talk show host Ellen DeGeneres hosted the ceremony that year and in the middle of the show, she reportedly walked into the seated celebrities for a selfie, calling everyone to join in on what ended up being one of the most iconic images of all time.
Actor Bradley Cooper took the selfie while other actors such as Brad Pitt, Angelina Jolie, Kevin Spacey, and others joined in. The selfie was one of the most retweeted posts on X (formerly Twitter) in history. The image got 2.7 million retweets and 2 million likes. According to The Hollywood Reporter, the selfie gave 4.87 million engagements to Ellen DeGeneres’ account. It was also one of the top five most retweeted posts.
Ten years after the legendary selfie was taken, an article in the New York Post theorized about the Oscars Selfie Curse. The article mentioned how most of the actors in the selfie have seen some amount of setbacks since the picture was taken.
Fans Call Out The Oscars Selfie Curse Narrative
Writer Johnny Oleksinski opined in the New York Post article that the famous Oscars selfie of 2014 had triggered a series of events that led to the downfall of most of the actors present in the image. Though probably written as satire, the article puts forth many pointers and coincidences that have resulted in major setbacks for the actors in the photograph.
Ellen DeGeneres herself faced massive backlash after reports of racism and a hostile work environment on the sets of her talk show The Ellen DeGeneres Show were revealed. A Buzzfeed News expose revealed that many employees and ex-employees faced racist comments, termination for taking bereavement leaves, and an overall toxic environment. The show ended in 2021.
The article then moved on to Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, who would marry in the same year. The ‘it’ couple of Hollywood were married for two years before Jolie filed a divorce due to irreconcilable differences after an allegedly violent altercation between the couple (via Telegraph).
Another selfie member Kevin Spacey’s career basically ended after he was accused of s*xual assault by many people in the entertainment industry. He has since been acquitted of all charges of s*xual assault (via CNN). The NY Post article also spoke about Bradley Cooper’s Oscar losses after being nominated twelve times.
Fans were annoyed and enraged at the Oscar Curse theory saying that it was far-fetched. Many mentioned how it was a Hollywood problem and not a selfie issue as many personalities since the image have been canceled or have faced setbacks.
Whoever wrote that article at the NEW YORK POST should be fired for writing such nonsense. Taking a selfie has nothing to do with or having a cause.
-@juliangarcia2010
Omg this is the stupidest news report I’ve ever heard they’re blaming their problems on a photo
-@meekermoo752
It’s not a selfie curse, it’s a Hollywood norm.
-@bradcarpenter1881
It’s definitely not a curse when they did it to themselves!
-@LSheWolf84
Whether the Oscar Selfie Curse is real or not, times have changed for most of the celebrities in the picture, including Meryl Streep, who reportedly separated from her husband in 2016 (via People). Only Jennifer Lawrence, Changing Tatum, and Lupita Nyong’o seemed to be safe for now.
