Punk'd is an American television show on MTV, first aired in 2003. It centers on the old Candid Camera idea of hidden cameras, but more closely resembles TV's Bloopers & Practical Jokes in that the show pulls pranks on celebrities, making them look ridiculous in the process. It is hosted by Ashton Kutcher. Although a couple of segments during the first season depicted unknown random people being punk'd, subsequent seasons have focused entirely on celebrities.
One of the best-known pranks involved convincing Justin Timberlake that the U.S. government was seizing his property and boarding up the doors and windows of his home for not paying his taxes.
A frequent segment during the first season had the then fifteen-year-old Ryan Pinkston pretending to interview celebrities for a kids' show, only to mock them instead.
The show has spawned the catchphrase "You just got punk'd".
In late 2003, it was announced by MTV that Kutcher had decided not to continue production on Punk'd. Some commentators speculated that the announcement was a ploy designed to lower the guard of increasingly wary celebrities in an attempt at another season of pranks. This proved to be true when the third season began airing on April 25 2004. The television audience itself had been "punk'd".
In December 2003, Kutcher attempted to "punk" WWE wrestler Goldberg by having him think a truck had run over his prized motorcycle, when really it was a replica, but the stunt went wrong when the truck clearly missed the bike. Goldberg quickly realised what was going on, and asked "Who do I have to kill?". Kutcher then revealed himself and went through what was supposed to happen. Then in June 2005, Kutcher failed to "punk" self-proclaimed King of Crunk Lil Jon. He was boarding a plane headed for Las Vegas, but Kutcher had actors playing customs agents tell him that he was actually headed for Ecuador. Lil Jon quickly identified members of the "customs agents" from previous episodes of the program, and asked for Kutcher to reveal himself.
In July 2005, Punk'd set a new record, when Indiana Pacers' Jermaine O'Neal was "punk'd" by four people, including Kutcher, Allen Iverson, and Todd Bridges.
By the end of the fifth season, a total of seven non-American/non-Canadian stars had been Punk'd: Ozzy Osbourne's daughter Kelly, Mexican actress Salma Hayek, Dallas Mavericks' Dirk Nowitzki, British singer Joss Stone, American Idol judge Simon Cowell, Sofia Vergara, and That '70s Show star Mila Kunis have also been "punk'd" by Kutcher's crew members. (For Hayek and Kunis, they were "punk'd" by Kutcher.)
At the end of the second season, Kutcher tried to "punk" (then) WWE superstar Bill Goldberg, starting a yearly tradition of "punking" WWE wrestlers. Season 3 he tried to "punk" The Rock, season 4 it was 'Stone Cold' Steve Austin & season 5, he "punk'd" Triple H.
Some controversies arose in seasons 3 and 4, when New York Yankees' third-baseman Alex Rodriguez and actor Michael Vartan threatened to sue Kutcher if the prank was aired on MTV or MTV2. Alex Rodriguez was Punk'd by Kutcher but, according to some people, he told Kutcher to destroy that tape and never to air the prank on MTV (it was destroyed but Alex Rodriguez is about to sue Kutcher for damages).
Dave Chappelle parodied Punk'd in a skit from his show called Zapped! a more disturbing version of Punk'd. The Daily Show's Stephen Colbert also parodied the show in his well-known segment This Week In God, introducing a new fake program called Baptiz'd.
In June 2004 O.J. Simpson, on the tenth anniversary of his ex-wife's and Ronald Goldman's murder, announced in interviews on Fox News and NBC that he was producing a straight-to-DVD, Punk'd-styled prank show of his own called Juice'd. [1] [2]
Celebrities who have been "punk'd" (in alphabetical order by last names)
- Akon (Jesse McCartney was in for Ashton Kutcher when he got punk'd)
- Jessica Alba
- Tori Amos
- Pamela Anderson
- Carmelo Anthony
- Ashanti
- "Stone Cold" Steve Austin
- Tyra Banks
- Travis Barker
- Jason Bateman
- Jerome Bettis
- Halle Berry
- Beyoncé
- Jessica Biel
- Rachel Bilson
- Thora Birch
- Bizarre
- Lara Flynn Boyle
- Bow Wow
- Zach Braff
- Adam Brody
- Adrien Brody
- Ryan Cabrera
- Trishelle Cannatella
- Vanessa Carlton
- Nick Carter
- Chingy
- Ciara
- Rachael Leigh Cook
- Simon Cowell
- Kaley Cuoco
- Rosario Dawson
- Taye Diggs
- Jamie-Lynn DiScala
- Hilary Duff
- Kirsten Dunst
- Eliza Dushku
- Carmen Electra
- Shannon Elizabeth
- Missy Elliott
- Eve
- Vivica A. Fox
- Seth Green
- Tony Hawk
- Salma Hayek
- Jon Heder
- Jennifer Love Hewitt
- Katie Holmes
- Marques Houston
- T.I.
- Allen Iverson
- Jadakiss
- Chris Klein
- Mila Kunis
- Nick Lachey
- Avril Lavigne
- Tommy Lee
- Lisa Leslie
- Lindsay Lohan
- Eva Longoria
- George Lopez
- Benji Madden
- Joel Madden
- Jena Malone
- Mario
- Jesse McCartney
- Benjamin McKenzie
- Jesse Metcalfe
- Dave Mirra
- Mandy Moore
- Tracy Morgan
- Frankie Muniz
- Mya
- Dave Navarro
- Brandy
- Dirk Nowitzki
- Jermaine O'Neal
- Shaquille O'Neal
- Omarion
- Jack Osbourne
- Kelly Osbourne
- Outkast
- Matthew Perry
- Mekhi Phifer
- Pink
- Laura Prepon
- Jaime Pressly
- Raven
- Tara Reid
- Denise Richards
- Kevin Richardson
- Nicole Richie
- Kid Rock
- Andy Roddick
- Michelle Rodriguez
- Zoe Saldaña
- Warren Sapp
- Mike Shinoda
- Ashlee Simpson
- Jessica Simpson
- Jeremy Sisto
- Brittany Snow
- Joss Stone
- Julia Stiles
- Amber Tamblyn
- The Game
- The Rock
- Justin Timberlake
- Triple H
- Tyrese
- Usher
- Wilmer Valderrama
- Sofia Vergara
- Kanye West
- Serena Williams
- Evan Rachel Wood
Celebrities who have been "punk'd" but haven't aired on MTV
- Bill Clinton
- JoJo (From Season 4 or 5)
- Juliette Lewis (From either Season 4 or 5)
- David Spade
- Alex Rodriguez (denied Punk'd broadcasting rights; filed suit against Kutcher for damages)
- Simple Plan (they noticed the cameras)
- Tré Cool
- Michael Vartan (according to Kutcher, Vartan's lawyers threatened to sue if it was aired)