A social media prankster on Sunday crashed the 'Oppenheimer' acceptance speech at the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA) awards in London. During the ceremony, a man dressed in a black suit and tie walked on stage and stood with the 'Oppenheimer' team - director Christopher Nolan, actor Cillian Murphy and producers Emma Thomas and Charles Roven - as they accepted the prize for Best Film. He also left the stage along with the filmmakers, before being detained by the security.
The whole incident was caught on camera. The prankster was seen sprinting up onto the stage as Hollywood icon Michael J. Fox presented the team with the award. However, nobody on stage inquired why he was there. Moreover, the 'Oppenheimer' team, as well as the audience, seemed unfazed by the intruder's presence.
Watch the video below:
Following the incident, members of the BAFTA security team revealed that they ousted the prankster shortly after he managed to join the 'Oppenheimer' cast and crew onstage. "A social media prankster was removed by security last night after joining the winners of the final award on stage - we are taking this very seriously, and don't wish to grant him any publicity by commenting further," a BAFTA spokesperson said in a statement to The Independent.
The award show did not reveal the name of the individual, but several fans online identified the man as a YouTuber who uses the alias Lizwani. He apparently has a history of infiltrating awards shows, which he has shared moments of on his social media accounts. He has previously snuck into high-profile events, including the 2022 Brit Awards as well as the Fifa Ballon d'Or soccer award.
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Moreover, as per the New York Post, the prankster confirmed his appearance at the award show by posting two photos and one video on his now-deleted Instagram story. In the clip, Mr Lizawani revealed that his infiltration of the BAFTAs was his "2nd TV appearance" and that a video will "be out soon". He reportedly also said that the police had taken away part of his footage, but claimed that he still planned to release the clip because he "has a lot left".
Meanwhile, several social media users reacted to the incident. "What a selfish lazy idiot photobombing their big moment 2) Of course no one reacted or said anything: they'd be accused of racism," wrote one user. "The BAFTA Prankster incident is both rude and hilarious," said another.
