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Man Jailed for Stealing Francis McDormand's Oscar

By Ceylan Pumphrey, Esq. on March 06, 2018 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

The Academy Awards are probably the most popular of the award shows, with millions of viewers watching worldwide. So, when a person wins an Oscar, there's no mistaking who that person is, especially if you're at the show or attending the after-parties.

Despite all of this, someone tried to steal Frances McDormand's Oscar, which she won for Best Actress for her role in Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri. Well, Terry Bryant was unsuccessful as he was arrested on suspicion of felony theft for taking McDormand's Oscar at the Governors Ball.

Not His First Rodeo

Apparently this isn't the first time Bryant has taken someone else's trophy. In January, he posted a video on Instagram where he's holding what appears to be a Screen Actors Guild Award. Bryant has another Instagram post from June in which he appears to be holding a popcorn trophy handed out at the MTV Movie & TV Awards. And, in fact, he also had a photo on Instagram from last year's post-Oscar Vanity Fair party where he's holding an Oscar.

Catching the Oscar Thief

According to a tweet by New York Times reporter Cara Buckley, a photographer for Chef Wolfgang Puck captured a photo of Bryant before retrieving the Oscar from him. An Academy spokesperson told PEOPLE magazine that "the alleged thief was quickly apprehended by a photographer and members of our fast-acting Academy and security teams."

McDormand didn't seem too affected by the incident -- her representative told PEOPLE that "after a brief time apart, Frances and her Oscar were happily reunited...[and] celebrated their reunion with a double cheeseburger from In-N-Out."

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