Alex Carson
Do you ever pick up a magazine from the newsstand and wonder what the heck was up with the photoshoot? There are quite a few awkward magazine covers that made the celebrities on the covers blush and made the media and the public talk non-stop. Some of these were so embarrassing, it’s a wonder that they didn’t cause a major dent in a celebrity’s career.
After all, some of these awkward magazine covers were so controversial that we couldn’t stop talking about them, even as the next issues went into circulation.
One of those was Julia Louis-Dreyfus’s magazine cover shoot for Rolling Stone magazine. While she was smiling on the cover, she didn’t feel to happy about it after the cameras stopped snapping away. No doubt, it’s one that she would blush at today.
Join FactsVerse to learn about how she regretted this awkward magazine cover immediately after posing …
WHERE DID YOU PUT YOUR JOHN HANCOCK?
In 2014, Julia Louis-Dreyfus graced the cover of Rolling Stone magazine. In the photoshoot, she was featured wearing – well, actually, she wasn’t wearing anything. She appeared nude with her back to the camera and her head was turned facing the camera. The only thing she was wearing was the text of the United States Constitution.
The image sparked controversy and sparked a conversation about political discourse and what role celebrities play in it.
The image was a commentary on the state of politics in America at the time and the importance of protecting the freedoms and rights granted by the Constitution.
Julia Louis-Dreyfus is best known for her roles in “Seinfeld” and “Veep,” and her role in the latter show made her a star once again. This is what led to her being asked to appear on the cover of Rolling Stone. In an interview with the magazine, she spoke about the importance of being involved in politics. She began using her platform to raise awareness about issues that matter to her.
Yet, she regretted this awkward magazine cover immediately after posing. It wasn’t so much that she was nude, which of course was part of the controversy. But on her back, was the signature of John Hancock. There was only one problem.
John Hancock hadn’t given his signature to the Constitution. Rather, he had given it to the Declaration of Independence – and people were quick to point out this historical blunder on behalf of Rolling Stone and Julia Louis Dreyfus.
The media went after this photo and for a while, there was a controversy. But Rolling Stone didn’t really care that the historical text was inaccurate and they didn’t care that Julia Louis Dreyfus was nude. 9 years later, the controversy has died down but this still remains one of the most awkward magazine covers of all time.
But if you think it’s the only one, we’ve got a lot more…
ZAC EFRON LIFTS, BRO
Zac Efron rose to fame with his role in the popular teen musical High School Musical and he immediately became a heart throb.
Now a grown-up, Efron is a fitness enthusiast and he’s even more of a heart throb. Zac Efron frequently hits the gym to maintain his attractive physique. Yet, even a celebrity who already has a great body can deal with awkward Photoshop issues. Such was the case with the May 2021 edition of Men’s Health magazine featuring Zac Efron on the cover.
While the photo is certainly flattering, there is one glaring issue: Efron’s left arm looks unnaturally muscular. It became dubbed as the bionic arm.
The exaggerated appearance raises questions about the use of Photoshop in the image.
This exaggerated photo certainly caused a stir when it was first released!
IS SHE SASSY?
You might have heard of Sassy magazine. It was a publication for Gen X teen girls in the 90s. It was also famous – or perhaps infamous for being at the forefront of challenging traditional beauty standards.
As a result, it came as no surprise when they featured an unconventional cover girl. The girl was a self-proclaimed nerd. The cover was accompanied by the headline, “Our beginner’s guide to makeup.”
The cover featured a girl with oversized glasses and braces, donning a red tuxedo jacket and bow tie. She was far from the typical, conventional cover girl that one might expect. The absurdity of the image made readers wonder if this was a serious cover or a joke.
The magazine cover, though perhaps a bit awkward, intended to challenge traditional beauty norms and celebrate individuality and uniqueness. By doing so, Sassy helped to empower young girls to embrace their uniqueness and differences, instead of adhering to societal standards.
KRISTEN STEWART’S MISSING ARM
Kristen Stewart’s rise to stardom was meteoric when she was cast as Bella Swan in the Twilight movie series. During the promotion of all of the Twilight films, she graced the covers of many magazines, and no doubt issues sold because of her glamorous covers. Yet, she didn’t look so glamourous when she appeared in one magazine, aptly Glamour Magazine!
The November 2011 cover featuring Kristen Stewart was an utter Photoshop disaster.
The image was poorly edited, and readers were quick to point out that Stewart’s left arm was entirely missing from the picture!
Her arm had been awkwardly placed behind her knee, and it appeared as if it had been removed it altogether. The strange pose she struck for the cover made the overall look very awkward.
KYLIE MINOGUE’S MISSING LEG
Kylie Minogue is not only a great singer but also a stunning woman who has always been at the forefront of fashion trends and has graced many fashion magazine covers.
As a result, it was no surprise when Elle magazine featured her on the cover of their January 2013 issue. The photo showed Kylie Minogue standing in a stylish mini dress and spiked high heels. To say this was sexy, was an understatement. Yet, there was still one strange flaw.
Like so many others, Kylie’s beauty was let down by some bad Photoshop editing. Part of her left leg had been cut out. She looked like an awkward flamingo and her back leg was completely absent. The mistake was immediately noticed by readers and quickly became a talking point.
If there’s an award that could go to awkward magazine covers, it can go to this one!
IS THAT TAYLOR SWIFT?
Taylor Swift is a popular singer and is also seen as one of our sweethearts – with her gentle and feminine looks that have made her loved all over the world. And when we say ‘all over the world’ – we mean it. She’s been featured on magazine covers all over the world in languages she hasn’t sung in! However, one Russian magazine cover stands out for all the wrong reasons.
On the cover of this Russian magazine, Taylor Swift looks more like a victim of bad Photoshop. Yet again, Photoshop ruins the day – rather than making the image look better!
Her face got airbrushed to the point where you can’t even recognize her at first and its obvious that they’ve tampered with how her skin looks. In fact, one has to question whether this is Taylor Swift or her Russian doppelganger!
DIE QUEEN?
German print magazine Der Spiegel’s August 2016 issue was issued to pay tribute to Queen Elizabeth II – 6 years before she eventually passed. However, the cover ended up giving a shocking message to the English-speaking world. The magazine’s cover had a photo of Her Majesty along with the words ‘DIE QUEEN’ – almost seeming as if the magazine wished the worst upon her.
However, anyone familiar with the German language would know that “Die” is the word for “the.” Simply put, the text translates to ‘The Queen.’
However, it’s unclear why the magazine decided to mix English and German. After all, the word for ‘Queen’ in German is different.
Remember when your teacher told you to proofread your work? Yeah, this is what happens when you don’t?
As you know, Queen Elizabeth II died in 2022. We trust that German magazines were a bit more careful now on how they presented this tragic news. There have been many tabloids that have reported on the ill-health or supposed deaths of the Royals – but this one really took the cake!
AN EXTRA LEG TO STAND ON
Once again Photoshop strikes again – this time, not to remove something but to add something. Or perhaps they should have removed something? When you don’t pay enough attention to the photoshoot, then you know something’s gonna go wrong. Once again, proofread your work.
Look at Vanity Fair’s 2018 Hollywood Portfolio issue, for example. The front cover features some of Hollywood’s biggest stars and we want you to pay close attention to Reese Witherspoon. At first glance, everything seems normal.
But don’t open the magazine just yet. Look a bit closer at the magazine cover. Upon closer inspection, you’ll notice that Witherspoon appears to have three legs!
The mistake didn’t go unnoticed and soon social media was talking non-stop about Reese Witherspoon’s 3 legs! People laughed but the actress also found it funny and she managed to recover from the awkwardness!
Just goes to show, sometime a magazine will cut your leg off just to give it to another actress!
These are just some of the awkward magazine covers that have hit our newsstands. Some actresses, like Julia Louis Dreyfus regretted their photoshoots immediately after posing. Others managed to make a joke out of it. Regardless, we hope we don’t see more of them.
Okay, actually, maybe we do!!
Do you remember seeing any of these magazine covers? Do you have any of them lying around on your bookshelf?
Actually, here’s what we’d like to hear from you:
Do you think that an awkward photoshoot can hurt a celebrity’s career?
Or is it true that any publicity is always good publicity and these covers helped their careers?
