Hollywood prankster celebrates 20 years since hit MTV show

Few people can claim they have pranked Hollywood's biggest names and gotten away with it.

But Matt Wheeler had the opportunity to do it again and again for MTV's hit series Punk'd.

And while he said he still gets nervous watching stars' reactions in clips of his pranks 20 years later, Matt told Today Extra he "had an absolute blast" doing it.

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Matt had the opportunity to prank stars including Samuel L Jackson, Kanye West, Rihanna and even Australia's own Hugh Jackman, and he said there was an important method to a successful "punk".

"I think you just use your instinct, I went to school and I did a lot of improv, so it's like you are doing a play and the other actors in the play don't know they are in it," he said.

"Playing it very real with conviction and wearing ridiculous glasses - I think that sells it, just playing it very straight."

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Matt and then-host Ashton Kutcher had a lot of fun with how creative producers got with the pranks, but there was one on a three-time Winter Olympic gold medalist that is a real highlight for him.

"It was Shaun White, the big snowboarder - I had my pants down around my ankles and was coming off the can and there was an explosion, it was just incredible," he said.

"He was so incredulous and a great kid, we just absolutely hammered him but he was a good sport about it."

See what else Matt had to say about his time pranking Hollywood A-listers in the video above

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