Liza Minnelli says Oscars organizers “ordered” her into a wheelchair moments before she walked on stage to present best picture at the 2022 Academy Awards, a last-minute change she describes as humiliating and unnecessary. In an excerpt from her forthcoming memoir, Kids, Wait Till You Hear This!, Minnelli writes that she agreed to appear only if she could sit in a director’s chair, then got told she had two options: take the wheelchair or skip the segment entirely.
Minnelli says the explanation centered on age and safety, with staff arguing she might slip from the chair. She rejects that rationale and says the switch undercut her preparation and her autonomy. Minnelli also alleges her co-presenter, Lady Gaga, refused to go onstage unless Minnelli used the wheelchair, writing that the demand left her “heartbroken.” The Academy declined comment when asked this week, and Gaga’s representatives did not respond to requests for comment, according to Entertainment Weekly.
Onstage, the wheelchair’s low position created a practical problem: Minnelli says she could not read the teleprompter clearly, which contributed to her stumbling over the introduction before Gaga stepped in with “I got you.” Minnelli frames that exchange as a public rescue that played well on camera while she felt cornered behind the scenes. She writes that Gaga later visited her dressing room to check on her, and Minnelli chose to stay gracious in the moment.
The episode has circulated for years, with Minnelli’s friend and collaborator Michael Feinstein saying in April 2022 that she felt “very disappointed” after producers altered the plan shortly before airtime, following a ceremony thrown into chaos by Will Smith’s onstage slap of Chris Rock. Feinstein said Minnelli had back trouble and worried viewers would see her limp, which is why she wanted the director’s chair plan in the first place. Minnelli’s memoir, out March 10, puts her account on the record and renews questions about how major live shows balance performer dignity, accessibility optics, and real safety needs.
