The Oscars are what everyone who has a little piece of their heart in cinema can talk about right now. While each year, fans eagerly await the ceremony to see their favorites honored, they also await the Academy to provide them with new viral moments. From Marlon Brando declining his Best Actor Award in 1973 to the infamous Will Smith Oscar slap in 2022, there is always plenty for the media and everyone else to gab about after the ceremony. And somehow, Ellen DeGeneres also contributed a small percentage to it.

The funny thing was, DeGeneres did not even have to lift a finger. She just casually dropped a picture with some A-listers of the movie industry, and well, that was it.

The story behind Ellen DeGeneres’ infamous group selfie

Brad Pitt, Bradley Cooper, Julia Roberts, Kevin Spacey, Jennifer Lawrence, and many more stars posed for a picture with Ellen DeGeneres at the 2014 Oscars. The photo instantly went viral and racked up millions of shares on social media. DeGeneres, the talk show host, happily tossed it out there with a cheeky caption saying, “If only Bradley’s arm was longer. Best photo ever“. Little did she know, this innocent snap would end up gaining “infamous” status thanks to some wild fan theories.

After that picture went up, whispers started spreading about a supposed “curse” on all the stars in it. First, DeGeneres herself took a hit by losing her “Queen of Daytime” crown amidst allegations of a “toxic workplace environment” in a 2020 BuzzFeed exposé. Then Spacey got the boot from Netflix’s House of Cards due to a barrage of controversies; Brad Pitt went through a messy divorce with Angelina Jolie; and Julia Roberts, once Hollywood royalty, seemed to lose her magic touch with a string of flops post-2014.

Recently, the viral picture resurfaced on the web once again after a decade, reminding fans of the stir it caused back then.

Fans reacting to Ellen DeGeneres’ iconic star-studded picture 

There were also some fans who questioned the “infamous” tag attached to the picture.

Meanwhile, another fan kindly corrected the use of “infamous” in the caption to “iconic“. They also shared the behind-the-scenes clip of the group selfie being taken.

While it is true that following the 2014 Oscars, many of the stars in the group picture faced unfortunate streaks in their careers and personal lives, linking it to a “cursed” picture is pure fiction, fit for the wildest of imaginations, not reality.

What do you think about Ellen DeGeneres’ infamous decade-old Oscar selfie? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below!