The 25 Grossest Nude Scenes In Movies
Caution: This list may cause lightheadedness, queasiness, and could diminish your sex drive.
Image via Complex Original
Is there anything more satisfying than a perfectly executed nude scene in a movie? Like the toy inside your box of Lucky Charms, these moments can brighten up even the most boring pieces of cinema, especially when it comes to foreign dramas that are low on explosions yet suspiciously high on flesh. But sometimes even nude scenes can disappoint, and as philosopher George Costanza once pointed out, there is good naked and there is bad naked.
While we’re always down to see some young Hollywood starlets bare all in the middle of a flick, we’ve also seen some of Tinsel Town’s less attractive denizens drop their pants for the sake of art. From the overweight, to the elderly, to the downright fugly, it seems like no group is too bashful for this sort of thing. So consider yourself warned: Complex is flashing you The 25 Grossest Nude Scenes In Movies.
Written by Jason Serafino (@serafinoj1)
25. Will Ferrell goes streaking, Old School (2003)
Life was good before we knew what Will Ferrell’s ass looked like. The sun shone brighter, desserts tasted sweeter, and the air was crisper. Then our world crumbled down around us when Ferrell, as Frank "The Tank" Ricard, went for a naked midnight jog after a pretty rough kegger in Old School.
We could have gone for a brief shot or two of the full moon. Instead, director Todd Phillips kept the camera right on his backside as he ran through the night air. We can still see it when we close our eyes.
24. Julie Andrews flashes the world, S.O.B. (1981)
There aren’t too many women in showbiz more wholesome than Julie Andrews, so when she flashed audiences in S.O.B., it was the equivalent of walking in on a beloved aunt in the nude. The scene takes place while Andrews’ character Sally Miles is filming a bizarre soft-core porn musical, and apparently ripping her top off was just vital to the plot of both the real movie and the movie within a movie.
And she doesn’t just reveal herself to the camera. She stands there topless for an extended take as our childhood memories of the lovable Mary Poppins get perverted forever.
23. Angelina Jolie proves that CGI nudity is creepy, Beowulf (2006)
In theory, a nude scene with Angelina Jolie should be a welcome sight for most film fans, but when it is an exact CGI duplicate of her body, that’s when things get a little weird. The uncanny valley is in full effect here as each pore and blemish is recreated with meticulous detail for Jolie’s performance as Grendel’s mother in Beowulf. But the digital recreation still just gives us the creeps, no matter how sensual and curvy she may be.
It looks almost photorealistic, yet it’s just fake enough to turn us off. (Maybe it's the demon tail?) Although, we’re assuming that these digital artists all received photo references of Jolie’s naked body in order to create her in the computer. For that, we’re envious.
22. Lin Shaye’s sun-scorched chest, There’s Something About Mary (1998)
We can’t think of a better way to warn people about the dangers of overexposure to the sun than the scene featuring the old, dried-out (prosthetic) chest of Lin Shaye from There’s Something About Mary. This quick flash of wrinkly womanhood happens so unexpectedly, when a peeper with binoculars accidentally catches her instead of luscious Mary (Cameron Diaz), that it’s nearly impossible to avoid. With leathery skin that resembles a Coach bag, that chest could stop a sex drive right in its tracks and cause any red-blooded male to envy the eunuchs of the world.
21. Barbara Crampton gets a little too much head, Re-Animator (1985)
Barabara Crampton is a beautiful woman, so why exactly does the sight of her naked land on this list? Well, at one point during Re-Animator, Crampton is stripped nude and placed on a table where Dr. Hill (David Gale) picks up his own reanimated severed head and sticks it between her legs. If the sight of a disembodied head performing cunnilingus doesn’t play havoc with your psyche, then you’re braver than us. For everyone else, be warned, this scene is just plain nasty.
20. Willem Dafoe and Charlotte Gainsbourg’s sex scenes, Antichrist (2009)
Antichrist is a virtual labyrinth of cringe-wrothy sex scenes, with the first one taking place during the film’s opening frames. Filmed in black and white, this slow-motion sex act is, of course, set to Handel’s "Lascia ch'io pianga" as a completely naked Dafoe pounds Gainsbourg incessantly for what seems like eternity. It’s just so foul and graphic that you'll probably need to Purell your whole body afterwards.
Later on, in a scene that's even more disturbing than the opening, the two have sex by a creepy tree that sprouts mysterious hands and begins to caress them mid-act. There are plenty more parts just like this to get nauseated to (genital mutilation, anyone?), but you get the picture. Nothing here is for the weak of heart.
19. Bruce Willis’ nude swim, Color of Night (1994)
For decades we’ve been accustomed to seeing Bruce Willis on the big screen kicking ass and taking names in action hero roles. In the romantic thriller Color of Night, Willis traded in shootouts and knife fights for tender lovemaking scenes as psychiatrist Bill Capa. And the most famous (or infamous) moment in the movie comes when he and patient Rose (Jane March) have sex in a pool.
As March goes under water for a moment, the camera follows her every move until we’re greeted by the unwelcome sight of Willis’ penis. We’re pretty sure it hasn’t appeared in any movie since; however, that doesn't make this five-second cameo any less unsettling. "Bruce Willis action movie" will never hold the same meaning for us.
18. Dr. Manhattan’s sex clones, Watchmen (2009)
If you’re uncomfortable with the nude male form, you should stay clear of Watchmen. Not only does the mountainous, blue Dr. Manhattan (Billy Crudup) spend most of his time completely unclothed, but he can also duplicate himself to create an endless supply of nakedness. In one scene, he pulled off this trick while having sex with his girlfriend, Laurie, and the results were just plain icky.
This might have been the only time in film history that a man actually had an orgy with a woman and two cloned versions of himself. We still can’t help but feel badly for the digital artist forced to animate the junk of three different Doctor Manhattans at once.
17. Jessica Tandy goes skinny-dipping at 85, Camilla (1994)
We here at Complex firmly believe that senior citizens have the same rights and privileges as younger generations, but frankly, we draw the line at elderly skinny-dipping. And that’s exactly what lands screen legend Jessica Tandy on this list. We’re sure in the late 1920s and '30s the sight of the actress, born in 1909, taking a naked plunge would have been welcome, but at 85, things weren’t looking so good.
So, if you ever have the sudden urge to watch Camilla (Why would you?) we suggest taking extra precautions to avoid this scene, such as staring at the sun for a good five minutes beforehand.
16. Jaye Davidson's surprise package, The Crying Game (1992)
This one doesn’t land on the list because it’s disgusting, but rather because of the shock that accompanies it. If you haven’t seen Neil Jordan’s The Crying Game and don’t want it to be spoiled, look away now because this one scene is really what the entire movie is remembered for.
Throughout the first half of the film, we were under the impression that Dil (Jaye Davidson) was nothing more than an attractive woman about to enter a physical relationship with a man named Fergus. But as the two are about to have sex for the first time, Fergus finds out the hard way that Dil is in fact a pre-op transwoman, thanks to the most infamous penis shot in cinema history. It taught a generation of men everywhere to just assume everyone has a penis unless told otherwise.
15. Donald Sutherland bares all, Space Cowboys (2000)
No one goes into a movie hoping to see a 65-year-old Donald Sutherland’s junk, but for people who rushed out to see Space Cowboys, they got bombarded by his elderly genitalia while his character is getting his astronaut physical. What’s worse was that same scene also features the elderly asses of Clint Eastwood, Tommy Lee Jones, and James Garner. It’s like being trapped inside of the locker room in Hell’s fitness club.
14. Philip Seymour Hoffman defiles Marisa Tomei, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead (2007)
Over the course of his career, Philip Seymour Hoffman has established himself as one of the best character actors currently working in film, but that doesn’t mean that we’re frothing at the mouth to see him strip naked for some gnarly sex scenes. Obviously Sidney Lumet didn’t feel the same way, and right at the beginning of his final film, Before the Devil Knows You’re Dead, he had Hoffman stripped down to his shame and mounting Marisa Tomei like a drunken frat boy, his belly perched on her fine bottom.
True thespians are never known for their million-dollar physiques, and unfortunately we had to see every inch of Hoffman’s here. This movie was Lumet’s last gift to cinema, and this scene was his way of flipping the proverbial bird to all of us.
13. Kevin Bacon’s full frontal close-up, Wild Things (1998)
There are certain actors and actresses we never want to see nude. It’s not necessarily about their looks; it’s more of a matter of principle, because their work has made them iconic and meaningful to us. Kevin Bacon falls into that category.
Despite our protests, he appears in all of his full-frontal glory in a shower scene from Wild Things. With that trademark smirk, he seems very aware that we’re all watching him naked, and he doesn’t seem to care one bit. More power to him, but we certainly didn't need to see his foot loose.
12. Joan Collins’s naked swing, The Stud (1978)
There was a time when a nude scene with Joan Collins wouldn’t have been a bad thing, but in 1978, she was in her mid 40s and flaunting around like a Playboy Playmate in The Stud. The movie itself was sexually provocative; however, the famous pool orgy scene is what most people will remember best. Most notably, this scene featured Collins having sex on a giant swing completely naked above the pool. In the end, this scene was an uncomfortable bit of overkill that would have been better off on the cutting room floor.
11. Jason Segel’s nude breakup, Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008)
In what might be one of the most embarrassing/funny nude scenes ever put on film, Sarah (Kirsten Bell) decides to break up with her longtime boyfriend (Segel) as he stands naked in her apartment. It’s incredibly awkward to watch; not just because of the events happening in their relationship, but because frumpy, doughy Segel stands there completely nude throughout the long process.
There are certain people that shouldn’t be without clothing on film, and Segel is definitely one of them. He’s lucky that he’s funny because we don’t think a career in underwear modeling is in the cards for him.
10. Robin Williams’ naked dive, World’s Greatest Dad (2009)
World’s Greatest Dad is one of the best dark comedies that you’ve never seen. However, in the closing moments of the movie, we’re treated to one of the flabbiest, unsightly things ever put to celluloid: Robin Williams stripping down in a high school hallway and water sports facility before diving into the pool.
Although we already saw him naked in The Fisher King, this was 18 years later and gravity had done a number on the world’s hairiest celebrity. And what’s the cherry on top of this bare-assed sundae? Williams takes a giant leap from a diving board at the end in slow motion and his junk floats into view in the water.
9. Terry Bradshaw’s naked room, Failure to Launch (2006)
In the '70s, the nation watched as Terry Bradshaw and his chiseled body led the Pittsburgh Steelers to four Super Bowls in a six-year span. Since then, the world seemingly forgot that Bradshaw even had a lower half as he’s been mostly behind a news desk as an NFL analyst. Yet, in 2006, we were once again introduced to the rest of his body when he inexplicably decided to show off every nook and cranny of it in Failure to Launch.
It wasn’t like the scene really called for him to be naked, either. He just…was. The MPAA really should have a rating higher than X for movies featuring the old asses of ex-NFL superstars.
8. Burgess Meredith makes us hate books, Such Good Friends (1971)
If we need to explain to you why a nude scene featuring Burgess Meredith would be a bad idea, then you probably don’t know who Burgess Meredith is. At the time, the dude was over 60, yet there he was, wandering around during a scene from Such Good Friends without a stitch of clothing on, except for a strategically-placed book hanging in front of his manhood. (And people wonder why no one likes to read anymore.)
Director Otto Preminger wasn’t known for his warm and cuddly nature, and it seems like this scene was his way of unleashing his wrath on humanity.
7. Marlon Brando, the old, doughy version, Last Tango in Paris (1972)
Somewhere in between being a cultural icon in the ‘50s and being north of 300 pounds in the ‘90s and ‘00s, Marlon Brando starred in an Italian piece of erotica known as Last Tango in Paris. In the movie, Brando played a character that had an affair with a soon-to-be-married woman from Paris in what was one of the most controversial movies of the decade. The two have graphic sex throughout the film where we see parts of Brando’s body that we would much rather have pretended never existed.
Apparently not bothering to go for a jog or pound out a few sit-ups before filming started, Brando flaunted his flesh with the brazenness of a streetwalker. Brando is on full display during one famous scene when the couple have sex on the floor of an apartment. All sensuality is erased once you realize that you're looking at the nude form of Marlon Brando, the man who used to pop back Big Macs like they were Tic-Tacs.
6. Sacha Baron Cohen and Ken Davitian’s naked fight, Borat (2006)
In a movie filled with uncomfortable moments, no scene from Borat compares to the naked hotel fight between Sacha Baron Cohen and Ken Davitian. The bulbous frame of Davitian jiggles and bounces uncontrollably while he straddles Cohen’s face in between his gargantuan legs in a scene that should make it hard to keep down solid foods for at least 24 hours afterwards.
If the sight of Davitian’s heaving mammaries don’t make you want to hit the gym, nothing will. Luckily the whole thing is so ludicrous that it’s nearly impossible not to bust a gut. Unfortunately, that laughter might be followed up by a bit of queasiness because the images of a jiggling Davitian should fester in your mind for the next few days.
5. Harvey Keitel exposes his inner turmoil, Bad Lieutenant (1992)
Harvey Keitel plays an terrible, awful excuse of a human being in Bad Lieutenant. And it's not just because of his dirty cop's violence or the drug use; it’s because he spends one bizarre scene completely nude and crying as we’re left to stare upon his amoral man parts.
Keitel seems very comfortable with every inch of his body on display on the screen, but we still haven’t made peace with it yet. Even worse, while nude, Keitel stands in a Christ-like pose, suggesting that he is in some way suffering for our sins. Meanwhile, it’s probably the other way around.
4. Michael Fassbender’s skeletal nudity, Hunger (2008)
Steve McQueen’s Hunger is one of the most powerful movies of the past decade. It revolves around the hunger strike of IRA volunteer Bobby Sands who revolted against the way political prisoners were being treated by the British government. Towards the end of the movie, when Fassbender is on the brink of death after refusing to eat for weeks, we see his naked, skeletal body being treated in the hospital.
It’s a disgusting, raw display of the human body, and what makes it hit so much harder is that Fassbender really lost the weight for this role. Fassbender's penis has been in so many movies that it should have its own SAG card at this point, but this isn't like the sex scenes from McQueen's sex addiction drama Shame, which are messed up because you know something awful happened to trigger the nymphomania. Here, the nudity is sad and physically revolting.
3. Billie Gibson haunts our dreams, The Shining (1980)
Any scene with nudity in a horror movie shouldn’t be trusted, and there is no better example of that than The Shining. In one famous scene, we see Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) lured into a hotel bathroom by a beautiful naked woman. Sounds like a sweet deal, right? Not really, because upon kissing her, he’s shocked to realize that she has turned into an old, naked, decaying hag right in front of his eyes.
What's worse is that her diseased body is seen clear as day as she then chases Nicholson from the room. It’s the ultimate buzzkill and also one of the most repulsive shots in a pretty disturbing flick. Don't worry, though, because things get much worse for Nicholson a bit later on in this list.
2. Viggo Mortensen’s bathhouse brawl, Eastern Promises (2007)
If you needed any more proof that a man is at his most unattractive while he is wrestling around a locker room naked, then the sight of a nude Viggo Mortensen fighting for his life in Eastern Promises should sway your opinion completely. Seemingly out of nowhere, this attempted assassination scene weds violence to an overload of flesh.
Every inch of Mortensen is on display here, as full frontal nudity collides in a cacophony of violence and fisticuffs. There aren’t a lot of quick cuts here either; instead, Cronenberg leaves the camera on Mortensen for extended shots that show off all of his manhood. The movie as a whole is great, and hopefully you can sit through this eyebrow-raising scene, though you'll be excused if genitalia and sharp instruments sharing the screen makes you queasy.
1. Kathy Bates skinny dips in a hot tub, About Schmidt (2002)
Do we really need to tell you why seeing Kathy Bates completely nude in a hot tub is a bad look? As we watched this scene slowly unfold, we knew what was coming, we just couldn’t do a damn thing about it. As she let her shower robe drop to the ground, Bates’ fully-nude body hit the screen with the force of a Mack truck, and we haven't forgiven director Alexander Payne since.
We never expected such a quaint movie to turn into a flesh show, but the 50-plus-year-old Bates let it all hang out—and we do mean hang. Luckily for Jack Nicholson, the script for the movie only called for him to look on in shock and scamper away like a thief into the night once he laid eyes on her. Needless to say, not much acting was actually involved in that.