"I'm the black David Beckham": Shaquille O'Neal once hysterically used soccer legend's name after getting in trouble with Royal guards
Shaquille O'Neal once got detained in London and found himself in trouble with the English police after trying to make a royal guard move. By law, the guards are required to stand still and show no emotion. As such, the authorities looked to punish O'Neal, with his celebrity status unknown at the time.
During an appearance on "The Late Late Show With James Cordon," O'Neal detailed the story as David and Victoria Beckham also watched on from the stage. He recalled trying to explain who he was to the authorities, noting how he was like "the black David Beckham."
"I got, I don't want to say arrested, but detained," O'Neal said. "...So, my friend bet me fifty thousand that I couldn't make the guards move...So the last time, I bumped them, they came out of nowhere and took me into some back room...I said, listen, David Beckham is your guy over here. I'm the black David Beckham in the States."
O'Neal continued by noting how he then apologized for his actions and was shortly released. However, the former Superstar isn't sure if his explanation is what convinced the authorities to release him.
"Tell Prince Charles that the black David Beckham, Shaquille O'Neal is sorry, he apologizes, and it will never happen again. I don't know if it worked, but the game came in like 10 minutes later and let me go."
Since his retirement, the Los Angeles Lakers superstar has become synonymous with hilarious stories from his day-to-day life and has gone viral on countless occasions as he retells them for public entertainment.
Shaquille O'Neal once starred in a movie
While still playing at an elite level in the NBA, Shaquille O'Neal featured in a 1996 movie known as "Kazaam," playing the role of a genie. The movie failed to have the success many were expecting and has since been deemed a mistake by the former NBA champion.
In an interview with Mark Anthony Green of GQ in 2012, O'Neal revealed how he felt that an opportunity to play the lead in a movie was too good to refuse.
"I was a medium-level juvenile delinquent from Newark who always dreamed about doing a movie," O'Neal said" "Someone said, 'Hey, here's $7 million, come in and do this genie movie.' What am I going to say, no? So I did it."
IMDB gives "Kazaam" a 3.1 out of 10 rating, but that hasn't stopped O'Neal from appearing in other movies, including Kyrie Irving's Uncle Drew, where he was given an opportunity to prove his acting skills.
However, judging by how O'Neal got out of trouble in London, those acting skills have likely never been questioned.