- February 19, 2024
- 10 minutes read
Prankster crashes ‘Oppenheimer’ acceptance speech at BAFTAs, gets removed by security
And the BAFTA for best prank goes to . . .
Members of the British Academy Film Awards security team revealed that they ousted a prankster shortly after he managed to join the cast and crew of “Oppenheimer” onstage after the ensemble won the coveted best film award on Sunday.
“A social media prankster was removed by security last night after joining the winners of the final award on stage,” a BAFTA spokesperson told Deadline after the awards show. “We are taking this very seriously, and don’t wish to grant him any publicity by commenting further.”
According to BAFTA officials, the prankster (third from left) seized the opportunity to join the film’s cast and crew when “Oppenheimer” producer Emma Thomas urged several members of the cast to join them onstage. BBC / Bafta film awards 2024
According to BAFTA officials, the prankster seized the opportunity to join the film’s cast and crew when “Oppenheimer” producer Emma Thomas urged several members of the cast to join them onstage, saying: “Where are you? Come on, all of you!”
The BBC broadcast caught the prank artist sprinting up onto the stage as Hollywood icon Michael J. Fox presented the team with the award.
Despite the award show refusing to name the individual, several online fans identified the man as a YouTuber who uses the alias Lizwani.
“Looks like @LizwaniYT broke onto the stage during #Oppenheimer winning at @BAFTA,” one fan posted on X along with a video of the prankster skulking behind Thomas, 52, and the film’s director, Christopher Nolan, who is her husband.
The prankster, who was dressed in a formal suit and black hat, can be seen looking around before smirking and looking at the ground during Thomas’ acceptance speech.
The Post reached out to both the BAFTAs and Lizwani for comment.
The BBC broadcast caught the funnyman sprinting up onto the stage as Hollywood icon Michael J. Fox presented the team with the award. BBC / Bafta film awards 2024
The prankster, who was dressed in a suit and black hat, can be seen looking around before smirking and looking at the ground during the acceptance speech that was being made by Thomas. BBC / Bafta film awards 2024
Lizwani, whose YouTube channel is filled with several other prank videos, confirmed his appearance at the award show by posting two photos and one video on his Instagram story.
In the video, Lizwani revealed that his infiltration of the BAFTAs was his “2nd TV appearance” and that a video will “be out soon.”
The prankster later further revealed that police had reportedly taken away part of his footage, but claimed that he still planned to release a video because he “has a lot left.”
“Looks like @LizwaniYT broke onto the stage during #Oppenheimer winning at@BAFTA,” one fan posted on X (formerly Twitter) along with a video of the prankster standing behind Thomas, 52, and the film’s director, Christopher Nolan (far left), who is also her husband. BBC / Bafta film awards 2024
The prankster later further revealed that police had reportedly taken away part of his footage, but claimed that he still planned to release a video owing to the fact that he “has a lot left.” @lizwani / Instagram
Lizwani later posted a photo of himself claiming that if it reached 1,000 likes he would release the full video.
The post currently sits at 930 likes.
This is not the first time that the YouTuber has snuck into high-profile events.
In 2022, the man managed to sneak into the Brit Awards as well as the Fifa Ballon d’Or soccer award.
“Oppenheimer” took home seven prizes, including a best director award for Nolan, 53, and star Cillian Murphy won the leading actor award.