What John Cena Was Wearing Behind the Envelope While ‘Nude’ at the Oscars

As it turns out, and as expected, John Cena wasn’t completely naked when he pulled a prank during his presentation for the Oscar for Best Costume Design. The former wrestler made a lasting impression on Oscar viewers when he took the stage appearing nude and in sandals only with an envelope covering his manhood on the famous stage. 

Entertainment Tonight reports Cena wasn’t fully nude. Instead, he used an iconic Hollywood technique to carefully cover his private parts. In his bare chest and buff body, he actually wore skin-tone fabric making up an item of clothing that looked like a cross between a loin cloth and a Speedo.

View on X

The memorable moment came as the evening’s host Jimmy Kimmel paid homage to the 1974 streaking incident involving the late Robert Opel, who ran naked behind an unsuspecting David Niven onstage, who was introducing Elizabeth Taylor. At the 2024 ceremony, as Kimmel gave a signal, Cena popped his head out from behind and whined that he felt “ashamed” and that it was a “tasteless idea.” Cena added, “Dude, I don’t wrestle naked, I wrestle in jorts.” Kimmel responded, “Jorts are worse than naked.”

Cena transitioned onstage in front of the mic, covering his area with a large envelope. “Costumes, They are so important. Maybe the most important thing there is. I can’t open the envelope!” he said with a gasp.

As noted, the moment was a tribute to what happened during the 46th Academy Awards, as Niven was introducing Taylor, who was presenting the award for Best Picture, He began a speech, noting that the world was “having a bit of a nervous breakdown,” and that film is an escape from reality. There was some commotion coming from the crowd, and then a man appeared from stage right wearing nothing but his mustache and ran across the screen, throwing up a peace sign during his streak. The show went on, as Hollywood always does.