Top 10 Worst Times Extras Have Stared Right Into the Camera

“Friends” (1994-2004)
Being on a sitcom like “Friends” has to be a dream come true. But you know what they say about how the sausage gets made, and some extras have problems with the camera. Case in point, this random lady in the fourth season episode “The One with All the Haste.” Joey talks to Chandler about Knicks season tickets, and a lady in a brown coat over Joey’s shoulder just can’t help looking into the camera. It’s not like this is a one time thing, either. Over the course of just twenty seconds, she looks into the lens a good five or six times. We’re surprised they didn’t do another take, because these glances are really obvious once you see them!

“The Peacemaker” (1997)
Doing long takes with a large group has to be a nightmare. One slip up and the entire thing has to be staged and filmed again. Or the director just shrugs their shoulders and says, “Eh, whatever, people won’t notice.” Well we did! The opening scene of this George Clooney thriller takes place in a Bosnian church. Dozens of extras watch a baptism as the camera zooms into a man with a gray beard. But our attention goes elsewhere. First, to the man in black beside the candles, whose eyes dart to the camera a good three different times. After that, it’s the woman behind gray beard’s shoulder, who stares directly into the camera as it approaches. Whoopsie.

“Hard Boiled” (1992)
When it comes to movie shootouts, it doesn’t get much better than John Woo’s “Hard Boiled.” Widely considered Woo’s masterpiece, “Hard Boiled” is filled with classic action scenes, including the opening teahouse sequence. The scene is nearly flawless, minus one…well, flaw. As the camera pans through the teahouse, a man in black can be seen admiring the birds above his table. But he casts a very quick glance at the camera as it passes above him. Luckily, our eyes are drawn to the action at the next table, so the mistake isn’t too obvious.

“Modern Family” (2009-20)
One of the most successful modern sitcoms, “Modern Family” won five straight Emmy awards for Outstanding Comedy Series. Point is, these people know how to make good TV. And even the people who make good TV let the odd mistake slip through the cracks. In the ninth season episode “Wine Weekend,” Claire and Jay share a glass of…well, you can probably guess. Sitting behind them is a woman in a blue sweater, who can be seen conversing with two other women. She does very well for the most part, but at one point she pushes her hair, rubs her nose, and stares directly into the camera. At least she didn’t take a fake phone call with her fingers. Looking at you, Gloria.

“Thor: Ragnarok” (2017)
Movie mistakes can really take away from the power of a moment. The climax of “Thor: Ragnarok” sees the titular event occur when Surtur destroys Asgard. Shortly after the planet explodes, the camera pans over a small group of grieving Asgardians. Everyone is staring off to their right with looks of shock and grief. Except for one bearded guy in the back. He does things a little different by impatiently darting his eyes around and landing them straight into the path of the panning camera. Luckily, he’s a little fuzzy and out of focus, so the damage isn’t too catastrophic. Unlike what happened to Asgard.

“Swingers” (1996)
Jon Favreau wouldn’t be the Hollywood megastar he is today without “Swingers.” He wrote the classic film and stars alongside Vince Vaughn as New York comedian Mike Peters. Near the end of the movie, Mike approaches a woman named Lorraine, who is played by Heather Graham. When that happens, not one but two extras ruin the meet cute. First is a man with longer hair, who does a double take while glancing at the camera. The second is a lot more obvious. The man not only comes into frame to look into the lens, but his eyes are also very well lit, making the goof all the more evident. But hey, the movie was shot for $200,000. You have to embrace the sloppiness.

“Home Sweet Home Alone” (2021)
Talk about sloppiness. The sixth entry in the “Home Alone” franchise, “Home Sweet Home Alone” was widely panned upon release, despite some big names like Ellie Kemper and Kenan Thompson. He plays a real estate agent named Gavin Washington, who in one scene meets up with Kemper’s character in a church. And during this scene, a white-haired man can be seen sitting behind his right shoulder. And this man is staring straight into the camera lens pretty much the entire time. It’s probably the funniest thing in the movie, however unintentional it may be. It looks like the man just could not care less, and to be honest, we don’t think the director did, either.

“Avengers: Endgame” (2019)
The climactic “Avengers” film was made for $400 million and still contained a glaringly obvious camera stare that we couldn’t pass up on mentioning, even if those behind the act might be considered more than just background performers. We guess no amount of money can prevent those kinds of mistakes. In one scene, a group of kids approach The Hulk in a diner and ask for a picture. Unfortunately, the young actors make some errors. The smaller kid looks at The Hulk’s chest rather than his eyes, presumably making eye contact with Mark Ruffalo rather than the cutout head he wears for reference. And then the older boy looks right at the camera while Scott throws a fit about his lack of attention. Ah, what are you gonna do, they’re kids. Watch them both win an Oscar one day.

“Curb Your Enthusiasm” (2000-)
A camera glance is bad enough. But when you add a filmmaker’s voice to the mix, things go from bad to downright clumsy. In the tenth season episode “Side Sitting,” Alice storms out of a restaurant after Larry sits too close to her. Shortly after she pushes the door open, a woman with black hair looks around the room and shoots a very quick glance at the camera. To make matters worse, someone then mutters, “The lady just looked at the camera.” It’s very quiet, and you’ll likely need headphones to hear it, but it’s there. Cue the awkward theme song.

“Goodfellas” (1990)
We’d probably get nervous and mess up too if we were sitting behind Robert freaking de Niro! In one of the movie’s best scenes, Henry meets with Jimmy at a diner and realizes that he’s about to be killed. It’s an enormously important scene in regards to plot and character development, as it’s this very conversation that turns Henry rat. But we can’t stop looking at the guy in the red flannel. The guy eats his food and tries his absolute darndest not to look into the camera, but he unfortunately fails in this pursuit. Right after Jimmy says “you got a good chance of beating the case,” the extra takes a bite and locks eyes with the camera. So close but so far.