Liza Minnelli says she was forced into wheelchair at Oscars 2022

Liza Minnelli, now 79, says she was forced to sit in a wheelchair while presenting with Lady Gaga at the 2022 Academy Awards. She had planned to sit in a director’s chair, but was “inexplicably ordered — not even asked — to sit in a wheelchair or not appear at all.” She writes she was told it was because of her age and for safety, because she might slip out of the director’s chair, which was “bulls—.” Minnelli says she told them, “I will not be treated this way,” and that her co‑presenter insisted she would not go on stage unless Minnelli was in a wheelchair, leaving her “heartbroken.” Being lowered in the wheelchair left her unable to read the teleprompter above her, and she says she felt disoriented and stumbled over a few words onstage.

Gaga comforted her in the moment, leaning down and saying, “I got you.” Afterward, Gaga came to Minnelli’s dressing room and asked, “Are you okay?” Minnelli replied, “I’m a big fan,” and recalled a lesson from her parents: at a moment of high stress, you stay gracious.

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