9 Shocking Wardrobe Malfunctions That Somehow Made It Into Films

Because the editors can't catch everything.

by Jack Pooley
Sex sells: we all know it so there's no point denying it. Hollywood sure as hell knows it, evidenced by their need to cram sex and suggestive imagery into everything from mature dramas to films aimed at children (because the parents need something to drool over, right?) Sometimes, however, a movie goes a little further than it actually intended, either because an absent-minded editor didn't catch a brief flash of breast or penis, or because the actor involved didn't realise quite how much of themselves they were giving away to their director. These nine moments of stolen nudity, appearing in everything from the biggest blockbusters to more intimate dramas, probably didn't catch your eye the first, third or even fifth time you saw each movie, but once you know, you won't be able to un-see it. Here are 9 shocking wardrobe malfunctions that somehow made it into films...

9. Femi Taylor - Star Wars: Episode VI - Return Of The Jedi

We kick off with some accidental nudity from one of the most popular movies of all time, as just 14 minutes into Return of the Jedi, there's some unexpected exposed breast from Oola, the Twi'lek slave dancer in Jabba the Hutt's palace. Moments before she's dropped down a trapdoor and eaten by a Rancor, Jabba grabs her slave chain, causing her to stumble towards him, at which point her boob straight-up pops out of her incredibly skimpy clothing. The lighting is very low in the scene and it's a blink-and-you'll-miss-it moment, but easy enough to spot without needing to sort through the scene frame-by-frame. What's most peculiar is that, for all of the "fixes" George Lucas applied to these movies on home video, he incredulously kept this one in. We're not complaining, but is it possible that he really didn't notice the green alien breast flopping around on screen?

8. Arnold Schwarzenegger - The Terminator

Though The Terminator does feature Arnold Schwarzenegger unabashedly trotting around in the nude in its opening scenes as he acquires clothing, James Cameron shot the scene in such a way as to retain Arnie's modesty while still getting its point across, utilising low light and distant camera angles. However, in this one shot, as the T-800 walks towards the gang of punks, Arnie's junk is clearly visible on the Blu-ray edition of the film, flopping around in the air in plain sight and likely giving anyone who hasn't seen the movie in a while a bit of a surprise. Yes, you can make it out on the DVD if you really squint, but Cameron and co. clearly under-estimated the visual fidelity of future home video and the amount of spare time people have to keep an eye out for things like this.

7. Natalie Portman - Closer

Many were disappointed when it turned out that Natalie Portman played a stripper in Mike Nichols' searing drama but didn't actually get nude...and the disappointment circled around a second time when, after it transpired that Portman had filmed nude scenes which were cut from the final film, Nichols promised to burn them to ensure that they didn't end up on, well, the Internet. That said, Portman did accidentally let some partial nudity into the movie late in the film, as when she's talking to Clive Owen's character and crosses her legs, one of her nipples briefly pops out of her tiny bra.

6. Amy Smart - Crank: High Voltage

Crank: High Voltage features an extremely quick, up-close glimpse of the lovely Amy Smart as a gang of cops are trying to arrest her and her boyfriend, protagonist Chev Chelios (Jason Statham). Smart's character leaps up on a police officer's back, at which point the camera angle gives us an extremely intimate glance at her underwear, including not only a visible pantie liner but also a very brief slip of her genitals. The scuzzy camerawork only makes it feel even more like something we shouldn't be seeing, and within a few fractions of a second, the hyper-edited film cuts back to its insane action.

5. Samuel L. Jackson - The Caveman's Valentine

Samuel L. Jackson is one of those actors most people probably assume has never done nudity, especially in the latter portion of his career, backed up by his own admitted discomfort with nude scenes. However, the little-seen 2001 drama The Caveman's Valentine (also known as Sign of the Killer in some territories) does feature an extremely brief glimpse of Jackson's "dingus" as he might put it, as he strips off and gets in the shower. The head of his penis seemingly unintentionally flaps past his leg once, and then as he heads into the bathroom we get a few frames of unambiguous Jackson johnson. Fortunately for Jackson, the movie isn't available on Blu-ray (so making a high-res investigation is impossible), and barely anyone's heard of it, so his nudity has mostly flown under the radar.

4. Julia Roberts - Pretty Woman

Julia Roberts famously has no-nudity clauses in the vast majority of her movies due to her distaste for disrobing, but early in her career, an on-the-rise Roberts did briefly flash some nipple in her star-making, Oscar-nominated performance in Pretty Woman. Near the end of the film, her character appears in a skimpy, sheer nightie, where her chest is pretty much visible anyway. However, when she gets down to some sexy time with Richard Gere, there's an incredibly fleeting but totally clear moment where, when she removes her nightie, her bare chest, nipple and all, can be seen. Though it's widely known that Roberts had a body double for most of her up-close body shots in the film, Roberts' face is visible during the shot, and considering that she likely didn't expect the camera to pick up anything, it's clearly a legit work of stolen nudity.

3. Mel Gibson - Gallipoli

In Peter Weir's classic war film, 25-year-old Mel Gibson briefly shows off, well, everything, when he strips down and goes for a swim with his fellow soldiers. As he dives into the water and swims downward, his modesty flails around for all to see for a split second. While it's reasonable to assume that there's going to be some visible genitalia when composing a shot like this, the fact that Gibson wasn't given a bag to contain his modesty and that the shot wasn't edited to remove it, in a PG movie no less, ensures that it wasn't supposed to appear in the film.

2. Jessica Rabbit - Who Framed Roger Rabbit

The laser disc release of the ground-breaking Who Framed Roger Rabbit features an "accidental" flash of Jessica Rabbit's nether-regions, a gag presumably placed in the movie by cheeky animators who wanted to place their stamp on the classic film. The scene in question occurs late in the film, when Eddie (Bob Hoskins) and Jessica are riding in an animated taxi, which crashes into a lamppost and sends the pair flying. Jessica spins around and, for just a few frames, reveals what appears to be her pubic region, as the area is somewhat darker than the skin tone of her legs. Debate rages this day as to whether or not Jessica flashed pubic hair, or perhaps the dark area is in fact supposed to be underwear, but the scene caused enough controversy that the crotch region was completely covered up for all future home video releases. As a result, we're left with this low-quality laser disc transfer to judge from, though considering its removal from future versions, the truth seems pretty obvious.

1. Tom Cruise - All The Right Moves

Tom Cruise may be one of the biggest movie stars in the world, but back in 1983, he was a mere 21 years old, and in this sports drama, he stripped down for a sex scene with the lovely Lea Thompson. However, as Cruise disrobes, his public region is visible for a few seconds, and for just a few frames, his circumcised penis pops into frame also. This was far too fleeting to be intentional, even though the movie was evidently R-rated, and as this was so early on in his career, Cruise likely didn't have much power to veto the nudity...or apparently to ask for a modesty purse (or maybe he simply didn't feel the need). Which unexpected wardrobe malfunctions shocked you the most? Shout them out in the comments!
Contributor
Contributor

Stay at home dad who spends as much time teaching his kids the merits of Martin Scorsese as possible (against the missus' wishes). General video game, TV and film nut. Occasional sports fan. Full time loon.