We love a good giggle! For this list, we’ll be looking at instances in film and TV where actors had trouble maintaining composed expressions due to the hilarious events taking place on set.
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Short filmTranscript
00:00 (laughing)
00:01 - What you laughing about, Ray?
00:02 - Uh, just thinking about you running
00:07 with them bullets flying all over the top of your head.
00:09 That's something to see there.
00:11 - Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down
00:15 our picks for the top 20 more scenes
00:18 where actors couldn't keep a straight face.
00:21 - Sure, go ahead, laugh if you want to.
00:23 - For this list, we'll be looking at instances
00:25 in film and TV where actors had trouble maintaining
00:28 composed expressions due to the hilarious events
00:31 taking place on set.
00:33 Thankfully, these breaks would be preserved
00:36 for audience to see.
00:37 Did you catch any actors cracking?
00:40 Let us know in the comments down below.
00:42 Number 20, stuttering lawyer, My Cousin Vinny.
00:48 My Cousin Vinny is perfectly cast across the board.
00:51 A standout being Austin Pendleton
00:54 as a stuttering public defender named John Gibbons.
00:57 Possessing a real stutter, Pendleton was a friend
01:00 of director Jonathan Lynn.
01:02 Although Lynn knew the role was tailor-made for Pendleton,
01:05 he underestimated just how funny the scene would be.
01:08 Lynn usually sat by the camera.
01:10 For Pendleton's big scene, Lynn had to hide behind
01:14 the camera to conceal his laughter.
01:15 The actors obviously couldn't do the same.
01:18 - He didn't kill anyone.
01:23 - Although hidden in the background,
01:26 Joe Pesci, Rap Macchio, and Mitchell Whitfield
01:29 can be spotted covering their giggling faces.
01:32 Whitfield confessed in an interview,
01:34 "When he's stuttering and my shoulders are going
01:36 "up and down like I'm crying, I was laughing.
01:39 "I couldn't help it."
01:40 - I get a little nervous.
01:41 - A little nervous.
01:42 - I'm getting better.
01:44 Number 19, wash and wear, The Proposal.
01:48 The Proposal reminded audience what an invaluable
01:51 comedic talent Sandra Bullock is.
01:53 The rom-com was also a showcase for Oscar Nunes,
01:57 who practically steals the show as Ramon.
01:59 If the blooper reel is any indication,
02:02 Bullock probably broke the most throughout shooting.
02:05 One of her breaks even made it into the finished film
02:08 with Nunes on the receiving end.
02:10 - No, I'm fine, thank you very much.
02:12 - It's a tradition.
02:12 - Oh, but see, it's the texture.
02:14 I'm not a fish person.
02:15 - I like it.
02:16 - Ramon won't take no for an answer while trying
02:19 to serve Bullock's Margaret an appetizer,
02:21 shoving it into her mouth.
02:23 Margaret chews the fishy hors d'oeuvres
02:24 for several uncomfortable seconds
02:26 before spitting it on Ramon.
02:28 Covering her mouth with the napkin,
02:30 Margaret appears to be holding in her disgust.
02:33 Based on Bullock's smile though,
02:35 she was clearly holding in her laughter
02:37 as Nunes improvised this line.
02:39 - So sorry.
02:40 - It's okay.
02:41 It's wash and wear.
02:42 Number 18, an eye for comedy, Will & Grace.
02:47 The season eight premiere of Will & Grace
02:49 kicked off with a live episode,
02:52 which the cast performed twice for both co-hosts.
02:54 Although much of the cast had done stage protections before,
02:57 preserving a straight face on live television
03:00 wasn't any less challenging.
03:02 Deborah Messing and Sean Hayes sniggered the most
03:05 throughout a conversation about cheating.
03:07 - I've never cheated.
03:08 - No.
03:09 (audience laughing)
03:12 - The two go in and out of character
03:15 leading up to the film's big reveal.
03:18 One of Jack's eyebrows was burnt off.
03:21 Messing tries to put on a horrified face
03:23 while Hayes attempts to stay solid.
03:25 However, a chuckle fest is erupting within both of them.
03:30 (audience laughing)
03:33 The laughter inevitably breaks free.
03:42 Although, Messing is at least able to cover her mouth
03:46 in hysterical horror.
03:48 Number 17, toe in a bottle, life.
03:52 There's nothing funny about being wrongfully incarcerated.
03:55 But when Eddie Murphy and Martin Lawrence
03:57 are amongst the prisoners,
03:58 there are bound to be more laughs than anticipated.
04:01 This scene demonstrates the commitment of both actors,
04:05 as they not only have to wear heavy makeup,
04:07 but they have to do so while standing barefoot
04:10 on boxes of bottle.
04:11 Both stay reserved until Lawrence's toe
04:14 accidentally slips into a bottle, causing him to crack.
04:18 - Oh, gee, man, one of my toes in the bottle, damn it.
04:22 - Lawrence's laughter proves infectious, getting to Murphy.
04:25 Yet, both still carry on with the scene,
04:28 which is made all the more impressive
04:30 given their uncomfortable circumstances.
04:33 This slip up works well within the context of the movie,
04:36 bringing levity to Ray and Claude's reconciliation
04:39 after not speaking to each other for several years.
04:42 - Ray, sure is good talking to you, man.
04:47 - Good talking to you, too.
04:48 - Number 16.
04:51 This impression is out of order.
04:53 The Big Bang Theory.
04:55 Simon Helberg is best known for playing Howard Wolowitz,
04:59 but he possesses great range as an actor.
05:01 His talents are reflected
05:03 through this Big Bang Theory episode
05:05 where he impersonates several household names,
05:07 including Al Pacino.
05:09 In a blooper, Helberg gets about halfway through his
05:12 "And justice for all" parody before losing it.
05:15 - Organic fungus that looks suspiciously like Al Pacino
05:20 rises from the forest floor.
05:23 - Helberg would get through the scene for the finished take,
05:26 although his co-stars showed no restraint.
05:29 You can tell that the cast is genuinely cracking up
05:32 over Helberg's spot on impression.
05:34 Kaley Cuoco most notably is seen turning her head
05:37 to the side, seemingly addressing the crew off camera
05:40 as she laughs.
05:41 - This whole apartment!
05:43 (audience laughing)
05:46 It's playing D&D.
05:47 (audience laughing)
05:50 - For a moment, this is essentially Helberg's one-man show
05:54 and the rest of the cast are part of the audience.
05:57 Number 15.
05:59 Morons.
06:01 Blazing Saddles.
06:02 For all of its over-the-top moments,
06:05 Blazing Saddles does delve into the harsh reality of racism.
06:08 For Mel Brooks, the most effective way to combat prejudice
06:12 has always been to make 'em laugh.
06:15 After Sheriff Bart is discriminated against,
06:17 Jim attempts to cheer his friend up
06:19 by epitomizing the town folks in one word.
06:22 - I'm glad those fingers ain't loaded.
06:25 Woo!
06:27 Just like old times.
06:30 - Actor Cleavon Little wasn't prepared
06:34 for Gene Wilder's morons punchline,
06:36 resulting in a sincere reaction.
06:39 Having just heard one of the ugliest words
06:41 in the English language, Bart and the audience
06:44 needed something to raise morale.
06:46 Wilder's line does the trick,
06:48 but it's Little's smile that brings
06:49 a much-needed human element to the scene.
06:52 - You know,
06:53 morons.
06:56 (laughing)
06:59 - It goes to show that even at his lowest point,
07:02 Bart's spirit is still blazing.
07:04 Number 14.
07:07 The Great Herring War.
07:09 The Golden Girl.
07:11 As the girls contemplate whether
07:12 to continue living together,
07:14 Rose unintentionally unites them
07:16 with her nonsensical tall tale of the Great Herring War.
07:19 It's been rumored that Betty White improvised Rose's story,
07:23 although script supervisor Isabel O'Meara
07:26 would debunk this.
07:27 Everything about the scene was scripted,
07:29 including Bea Arthur and Rue McCannahan's laughter.
07:32 - Circus, a herring circus, sort of like Sea World,
07:36 only smaller.
07:37 Much, much smaller.
07:41 - Although the script called for them
07:43 to crack up at certain lines,
07:44 many fans still argue just how much of the laughter
07:47 was genuine.
07:48 As Arthur and McClanahan hide their faces,
07:51 it feels less like scripted laughter
07:53 and more like the real deal.
07:55 (laughing)
07:58 - Only once.
08:03 - Maybe Arthur and McClanahan were just that convincing,
08:09 or maybe this shows the lighthearted side of method acting.
08:13 Either way, White is the only one with a straight face.
08:18 Number 13, Pink in the Face,
08:21 the return of the Pink Panther.
08:23 Peter Sellers, like Jock Clouseau,
08:25 was an unpredictable screen presence.
08:28 Even if you knew that an over-the-top antic was coming,
08:31 that didn't make the execution any less hilarious.
08:35 For Catherine Schell, it was hard getting through
08:38 the fourth Pink Panther film
08:39 without snickering at Sellers' hygienes.
08:42 Even before Jock introduced himself to Lady Claudine,
08:45 Schell can't suppress her natural instinct to laugh.
08:48 - Depends on your intentions.
08:50 - Strictly, I don't know about liking that face.
08:53 - At times, Schell's constant smiling works well enough,
08:56 given the scene's flirtatious nature.
08:58 On multiple occasions, though,
09:00 Schell hides her laughter behind her hand or a glass.
09:04 Other times, the filmmakers make no attempt
09:07 to cover the laughter, just letting it slide.
09:10 Perhaps they could've done more takes,
09:12 but then the scene would've been robbed of its spontaneity.
09:15 - It is looking good for you, kid.
09:19 (shrieks)
09:21 - Number 12, Sitting on the Toilet, Ocean's Twelve.
09:26 Ocean's Twelve is nobody's favorite entry
09:28 in the heist series.
09:30 - It's just wrong!
09:32 - But we do get a memorable line here and there.
09:36 A highlight comes when Elliot Gould's Reuben
09:38 is banging on Frank's bathroom door.
09:41 Scott Cahn's Tert points out how rude Reuben is being,
09:44 given Frank's awkward position.
09:46 Reuben responds by painting Tert a disgusting portrait
09:49 of what's going to happen to his feet
09:50 if he doesn't get to the toilet soon.
09:53 Before Gould is even done delivering the line,
09:55 Cahn turns away with a grin on his face.
09:58 - How do you think it feels when you're sitting down
09:59 on the toilet and someone's banging on the door?
10:01 - Well, I gotta sit down on the toilet,
10:02 otherwise I'm gonna shit on your feet.
10:04 - Come on, Frank.
10:05 - Rather than try to conceal this,
10:07 the camera follows Cahn as he walks off to the side
10:09 with his head turned.
10:11 While the line itself is gold,
10:13 Cahn's reaction was seemingly too priceless
10:15 to tiptoe around.
10:16 Number 11, Food Poisoning, Parks and Recreation.
10:21 Sometimes, it's what you love the most
10:24 that results in one's undoing.
10:26 Such is the case with Ben Wyatt and calzones.
10:29 - It was a calzone.
10:30 - It was literally just a small calzone.
10:33 The Italian delicacy gives Ben, Ron, and Chris
10:35 food poisoning to the point that they can barely
10:38 move around the room.
10:39 As Ben struggles to dial the phone on the floor,
10:42 Chris leans into the shot with his face
10:44 taking up much of the frame.
10:46 Despite being on full display,
10:48 the expression on Chris' face is often mistaken for agony.
10:52 Upon further expression, though,
10:54 it's evident that actor Rob Lowe has a massive grin
10:58 that he's trying to pass off as pain.
10:59 Perhaps Lowe was in pain during this scene,
11:02 but it likely had more to do with his funny bone
11:05 than a stomach bug.
11:06 - The calzones betrayed me.
11:10 - Never again, guys.
11:11 As God is my witness, they're dead to me.
11:14 - Number 10, Principals Office, This Is 40.
11:18 As well-written as Judd Apatow's comedies are,
11:21 the funniest moments are often the ones
11:23 delivered on the spot.
11:24 The most rewatchable scene in This Is 40
11:27 finds Melissa McCarthy's Catherine
11:29 ripping into Pete, Debbie, and Principal Jill.
11:31 As McCarthy ad-libs insult after insult,
11:35 Leslie Mann barely wrangles the smile
11:37 stretching across her face.
11:38 - This is why everybody hates you, Jill.
11:40 - Only a few reaction shots made it into the finished scene,
11:44 as Mann and Paul Rudd both broke down
11:46 during McCarthy's stone-faced tirade.
11:49 A longer version of the scene
11:50 would be featured during the end credits
11:52 where Mann and Rudd show no restraint.
11:54 - Probably I'm gonna start with Karen Carpenter's head.
11:57 I'm gonna rip her head off, and I'm gonna drink her blood.
12:01 - Even as the actors break down in tears,
12:04 McCarthy just keeps going
12:05 until she's out of creative profanity.
12:08 Only then does someone say, "Cut."
12:10 Number nine, Strip Club, That '70s Show.
12:15 Here's another scene where the cameras just kept rolling,
12:19 despite practically everyone on set going to pieces.
12:22 Escorting Donna and Jackie to a strip club,
12:25 Kitty gets a little too freaky with the talent.
12:27 Actress Debo Droh Rupp hadn't fully rehearsed
12:30 her enthusiastic dance, catching Mila Kunis off guard.
12:34 (audience laughing)
12:37 Kunis was broken to the point
12:42 that she threw herself to the side.
12:44 Although only Kunis' break made it into the episode,
12:48 Laura Prepon, Luke Wilson, and the male stripper
12:50 were all crumbling with the sillies.
12:52 Rupp was the only one staying in character,
12:55 waiting for someone offstage to finally put the scene to rest.
12:58 The question is, who brings more energy to this scene?
13:02 Kitty or the dedicated stripper doing one-arm pushups?
13:05 - I was dying laughing.
13:07 I was gone.
13:08 It took forever for me not to laugh.
13:10 - Number eight, The Cowardly Lion, Oh My, The Wizard of Oz.
13:14 When The Cowardly Lion roars onto the screen,
13:17 Dorothy and her friends are initially startled.
13:20 It doesn't take long for them to realize
13:22 that the beast is about as ferocious
13:24 as a domesticated kitten.
13:25 Judy Garland is so unintimidated
13:27 that she begins to break as the lion trembles in tears.
13:30 After Dorothy assures the lion that he's not bleeding,
13:33 Garland takes a brief pause with a grin
13:36 creeping upon her face.
13:37 - Well, of course not.
13:38 (Garland laughing)
13:41 - Garland does her best to mask the smile
13:43 by lifting Toto up to her mouth.
13:45 From there, Garland manages to shift back into character.
13:48 Considering that an adult man in a lion suit
13:51 was crying in front of her,
13:52 it's amazing that Garland got through this scene
13:54 with only a minor hiccup.
13:56 - It's all right now.
13:57 The wizard will fix everything.
14:00 - Number seven, the library cop, Seinfeld.
14:03 Jerry Seinfeld might be the most notorious breaker ever
14:07 to headline a sitcom.
14:08 On a good day, Seinfeld would get through a scene
14:11 just grinning.
14:12 In other cases, Seinfeld helplessly dissolved into giggles.
14:16 According to Seinfeld,
14:17 the hardest scene he ever had to shoot
14:20 paired him with the late Philip Baker Hall
14:22 as Lieutenant Bookman.
14:23 Although Hall plays the character
14:25 with the intensity of a law and order detective,
14:27 Bookman is merely a library investigations officer.
14:30 - You're a comedian, you make people laugh.
14:32 - I try.
14:33 - You think this is all a big joke, don't you?
14:34 (audience laughing)
14:36 - Bookman's serious demeanor
14:38 perfectly offsets Seinfeld's silly persona.
14:41 Seinfeld found the scenario so humorous
14:44 that they had to do eight takes,
14:46 stitching together any usable footage.
14:49 Even in those clips, Seinfeld let several smiles slip through
14:52 as Bookman interrogates him
14:54 with the conviction of a heart-broken Humphrey Bogart.
14:57 - So that scene that you see
14:59 is made up of about eight different times we shot it
15:02 and we took the pieces that worked and put it together
15:06 'cause I messed that one up a ton.
15:08 - Number six, tight-lipped Jim, "The Office."
15:12 Like Seinfeld, John Krasinski was infamous
15:15 for breaking on "The Office"
15:16 with Steve Carell usually at the root of his chuckles.
15:19 Whenever an episode paired Michael and Jim,
15:22 you can expect Krasinski to become
15:24 silly putty in Carell's hand.
15:26 The episode "The Secret" is one example.
15:28 Michael strives to bond with Jim at the soda machine.
15:31 Having learned about his crush on Pam,
15:33 Krasinski seems to get through the scene fine,
15:35 but that's only because of the editor.
15:38 - I'm gonna take off, actually.
15:39 - All right, well, cool.
15:41 According to Jenna Fisher,
15:43 Krasinski could not stop laughing throughout the scene.
15:46 The editor could only do so much
15:48 to hide another Krasinski break
15:50 at the office supply station.
15:51 As Angela Kinsey puts it,
15:53 "When Krasinski loses it, his whole body collapses.
15:57 "He just becomes a noodle."
15:59 - Fact, you were drinking grape soda.
16:01 You never drink grape soda.
16:02 Fact, you were talking to Jim.
16:04 You never talk to Jim.
16:05 - Number five, Matt Foley, "Saturday Night Live."
16:09 SNL has given us no shortage of classic breaks
16:12 across its nearly 50-year history.
16:14 Matt Foley provided the ultimate endurance test
16:17 whenever he stormed into Studio 8H.
16:20 The legendary Chris Farley donned the thick glasses
16:23 and undersized jacket for the first time in 1993.
16:26 - See me, I'm hiding behind my hair
16:27 because I knew that if I looked at him for one second more,
16:31 I was gonna drop off that couch.
16:33 - Comedy history was made,
16:35 as evidenced by the cast doing everything in their power
16:38 not to laugh at Farley's intense delivery
16:41 and over-the-top gestures.
16:43 David Spade and Christina Applegate
16:45 are seemingly the sketch's most prominent breakers,
16:48 although Julia Sweeney was cracking up so much
16:50 that the camera had to work around her.
16:52 Sweeney recalls, "It was like I had the best seat
16:55 "in the house for the funniest freakin' thing
16:57 "that was happening on the planet."
16:59 - Now, you kids are probably asking yourselves,
17:01 "Hey, Matt, how can we get back on the right track?"
17:05 (audience laughing)
17:06 - Number four, "Niffy," the Andy Griffith show.
17:10 When you're a seasoned comedy star like Don Knotts,
17:13 how many times can it take to get a scene right?
17:16 Five, 10 at most?
17:18 Try about 20, specifically this scene from "Guest of Honor."
17:22 - I had to do more than 20 takes
17:24 because every time I looked at him, I broke out laughing.
17:28 - Barney Fife isn't the most intimidating officer.
17:31 He's an even less threatening drill sergeant.
17:34 But Barney isn't messing around
17:35 as he grills three new deputies.
17:37 As authoritative as Barney comes off,
17:40 Knotts was anything but disciplined on set.
17:43 He couldn't stop laughing thanks to Floyd Lawson,
17:45 who continually got him with the line, "Nip it."
17:49 - Nip it in the bud!
17:50 - Nip it in the bud!
17:52 - Let's hear it!
17:53 - Nip it in the bud!
17:54 (audience laughing)
17:57 - Knotts eventually geeked through the scene,
18:00 but in the finished version,
18:01 Griffith is seen covering his gaping grin.
18:04 Maybe they could have done another take,
18:06 but after a while, you've got to nip it in the bud.
18:10 Number three, "The Dentist," the Carol Burnett show.
18:14 Harvey Korman might've racked up the most breaks
18:17 on the Carol Burnett show,
18:19 with Tim Conway typically to blame.
18:21 Conway once said, "My object was to find places
18:24 "in the sketch where I knew I could break up Harvey.
18:27 "I don't think I ever missed."
18:29 Nowhere was this more apparent than in "The Dentist" sketch,
18:32 where Korman plays Conway's unsuspecting patient.
18:36 - Yeah, I'll be right with you.
18:37 (audience laughing)
18:40 - Korman does his darndest to pass off
18:44 his stifled laughter as physical pain.
18:47 The longer the sketch goes on, though,
18:49 the more cracks begin to surface.
18:51 Korman wasn't prepared for the Novocaine portion
18:53 of the sketch, which is where the hysterics
18:56 completely take over.
18:57 Conway claims that Korman was laughing so hard
19:00 that he wet himself,
19:02 and this was all done without nitrous oxide.
19:05 - He did. - Of the situation.
19:06 - He actually wet his pants, so--
19:08 - He wet his pants? - Yes, laughing.
19:11 - Number two, "Biggest."
19:13 Can we still say that on YouTube?
19:15 Monty Python's "Life of Ryan."
19:18 Michael Palin graduated from Oxford,
19:20 was knighted by Prince William,
19:22 and served as a commander of the Order of the British Empire.
19:26 He's also uttered what might be
19:27 the most hilarious juvenile name in cinema.
19:30 - What's so funny about "Biggest Dickest?"
19:34 - Reflecting on "Life of Ryan,"
19:36 Palin said that the Pontius Pilate scene
19:38 was the hardest to shoot,
19:40 because it had to be structured
19:41 around continuous suppressed laughter.
19:43 As legend goes, the soldiers were told
19:46 to keep a straight face,
19:47 but they were supposedly unprepared for the laugh riot
19:51 that Palin was about to trigger.
19:53 Palin gets through most of the scene
19:55 with unbelievable composure,
19:56 but even he can't help himself
19:58 upon coming face-to-face with Chris Langham.
20:02 Palin's smile isn't as big as Langham's,
20:04 but the name finally gets to him.
20:07 - When I say the name, "Biggest."
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20:27 - Number one, "Grabbin' the Bags,"
20:31 Young Frankenstein.
20:32 Part of what makes Gene Wilder's performance
20:35 as Young Frankenstein so great
20:37 is how seriously he approaches the role.
20:39 As refined as Wilder can appear as Dr. Frankenstein,
20:43 he broke so many times
20:44 that it wasn't uncommon for the crew to do
20:47 around 15 takes before getting a scene right.
20:50 The arrival of Madeline Kahn's Elizabeth
20:52 resulted in one of the funniest and most stressful shoots.
20:56 (woman screams)
20:57 - Oh!
20:58 (woman laughs)
20:59 - Stop that.
21:00 I'm talking about the luggage.
21:02 - The scene itself isn't very long,
21:04 but it would take up a good portion of the blooper reel.
21:07 Wilder naturally broke the most frequently,
21:10 which rubs off on Kahn, Terry Garr, and Marty Felton.
21:13 They eventually got a take
21:15 that Mel Brooks was satisfied with.
21:17 - Stop that!
21:18 Now just stop that!
21:19 Drop it!
21:21 (men laugh)
21:23 - All right, that's good.
21:24 I can use it up.
21:24 - Even then, Wilder is visibly smiling
21:27 as Igor bites and barks at Kahn.
21:30 - Did you enjoy this video?
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