When Vitalii Sediuk Attacks: His Most Outrageous Red Carpet Pranks

Somewhere out there is a fiendish man named Vitalii Sediuk, a red carpet prowler with a mission: to perform the ultimate violation of personal space. Sediuk, a Ukrainian TV presenter, is best known as a celebrity prankster, who has made headlines multiple times. He lurks at red carpet events, looking for opportunities to prank unsuspecting celebrities by, uh, getting close to their crotch in some way. It has been reported that Sediuk has “hugged” both Leonardo DiCaprio and Bradley Cooper, on two seperate occasions, on the red carpet, placing his face right in the family jewels. Awkward.

Sure, it’s harmless and quite funny to see. But after all this time, his motivations are still unclear. Why does he do this? What does he gain from humiliating these celebrities? To be honest, I can’t even wager a guess. Instead, let’s take a look back at the top 5 most outrageous times Seduik has made a move on helpless celebrities.

5. Will Smith at the Men in Black 3 Premiere

We first heard of Sediuk back in 2012, during the premiere of Men in Black 3. It’s hard to forget the strangeness that came from watching Seduik (an unknown man at the time) going up to Will Smith and attempt to kiss him. I think “why?” resonated with all of us back then. It was bizarre and uncalled for. Of course, the actor retaliated with a justified slap to the face, and the Ukrainian reporter was taken away by security. Little did we know, it wasn’t the last time the world would see of him.

4. 2013 Grammys

Sediuk moved up in his career when he stormed the stage at the Grammys in 2013, crashing one of Adele's acceptance speeches. He went up and thanked everyone for “his award” and added “I love you, Adele” before he was guided off stage by Jennifer Lopez. His actions were not without consequences, as he almost faced a total of six months in jail with a $1,000 fine.

3. The 2013 Oscars

Bjork was the next victim in Sediuk’s odd agenda of red carpet pranking. He showed up at The Oscars’ red carpet event dressed in an outfit that imitated Bjork’s swan dress while carrying a bucket full of souvenir Oscar replicas. It took at least seven LAPD officers to stop him at the red carpet – he had previously been banned from attending. But perhaps this was the moment where Sediuk’s intentions are finally revealed. He told The Hollywood Reporter that “In Ukraine and Russia, the swan is a symbol of crushed dreams.” In this instance, it appears Sediuk had reasonable goals rather than randomly pranking Bjork at the red carpet and says a little bit more about his intentions. Will be begin to see Sediuk as some kind vigilante that looks to protest celebrities who insult certain aspects of global culture? Hint: no.

2. America Ferrera at Cannes

Sediuk’s noble gestures of protest were tainted when he recently decided to shove his head up America Ferrera’s dress at the 2014 Cannes Film Festival. That one was completely uncalled for, and caused him to lose his job.

1. Brad Pitt at ‘Maleficent’ Premiere

Sediuk’s latest attack took place Wednesday night at the premiere of Maleficent. His victim this time was Brad Pitt, who was accompanying his fiancee and star of the film, Angelina Jolie. And when I say attack, I mean he literally physically struck Pitt in the face when he approached him at the carpet. Did the Ukrainian TV personality take it a step too far in this latest stunt? Probably. But one thing is clear, he doesn’t seem to be slowing down with the pranks, and each one gets more intense than the last. So hopefully his next celebrity victim will be physically unharmed at the expense of our amusement.