Academy Bars Will Smith From Oscars Ceremony for 10 Years After Slap
Source: NYT
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences said on Friday that Will Smith would be barred from attending the Oscars for 10 years because of the harmful behavior he displayed when he struck the comedian Chris Rock during last months ceremony.
The ban came a week after the actor resigned from the organization following his violent outburst on the Oscar stage on March 27.
In an open letter released after a morning meeting of the academys 54 governors, the groups president, David Rubin, and its chief executive, Dawn Hudson, also called Mr. Smiths behavior unacceptable and admitted to not handling the situation properly during the telecast.
Read more: https://www.msn.com/en-us/entertainment/news/academy-bars-will-smith-from-oscars-ceremony-for-10-years-after-slap/ar-AAW0t1A?ocid=msedgntp&cvid=c64c2648ab55458d85a31ce2db9b1ea3
ruet
(10,039 posts)whistler162
(11,155 posts)could have been barred for 5 years!
ificandream
(9,387 posts)exboyfil
(17,865 posts)He should have gotten it in the mail with a note about not bothering to come back next year (or the next ten years I guess).
Until they pull Weinstein's and Polanski's, they shouldn't pull Smith's Oscar. He did earn that Oscar.
BlackSkimmer
(51,308 posts)Even though he ruined it lol.
PatSeg
(47,586 posts)I don't think it should have been taken from him, but I agree, it shouldn't have been presented to him that night. The Oscar was for his work, not his disposition or behavior.
Kablooie
(18,641 posts)It is the symbol of his actions that night.
Initech
(100,102 posts)Midwestern Democrat
(806 posts)was going to be the winner (there have been surprises over the years), so they had to open the envelope and announce the winner - and since they didn't eject him from the auditorium, it would have been extremely awkward to have last year's Best Actress Winner announce his name and then - as Smith starts walking toward the podium - force her to say "Mr. Smith will be given his award backstage".
Midwestern Democrat
(806 posts)You can't ask an actress/presenter to do the Academy's dirty work of telling Will Smith on live television "You won but you can't come up onstage to collect it". The big mistake that night was not removing Will Smith from the auditorium right after the incident.
exboyfil
(17,865 posts)He should have been escorted out and charged with Disturbing the Peace or Assault and Battery if Rock had filed a complaint.
cstanleytech
(26,319 posts)when he chose to assault Chris Rock.
As for the 10 years? I would have gone a bit further and also made it so no production he is in any way a part of for the next 5 years will be eligible for an award.
PJMcK
(22,048 posts)By reacting violently and using foul language, Smith wasted many years of cultivating a "good guy" image. It will be monumentally difficult for him to recover unless he becomes a philanthropist.
In entertainment, like politics, image is everything. Once it's damaged, it's really hard to rebuild the original brand. Ask Tiger Woods, Mel Gibson or Andrew Cuomo.
Such stupid behavior!
onenote
(42,759 posts)Javaman
(62,534 posts)no more will the plumb rolls be offered to him.
and if he ever regains any of his former stature, those rolls will be offered up to the new up and comers.
I worked in the movie industry for many years. I worked on a list productions and bottom of the barrel productions. and many of the bottom of the barrel productions featured very famous former A listers. who were humbled by time (and personal fuck ups)
he will still get work but it won't be anything he's used to.
LiberalFighter
(51,084 posts)SergeStorms
(19,204 posts)They've been talking about his "courageous" recovery for the past two days now. They're making it sound like he was wounded in a righteous war, or he sacrificed his body catching a baby falling from a 10-story window. He totaled his car doing twenty miles an hour over the speed limit while not wearing his shoulder harness.
Woods has always been given the benefit of any doubt.
BradAllison
(1,879 posts)He's a "good 'un". Unlike LeBron James shooting his mouth off about BLM.
SergeStorms
(19,204 posts)If that's what it takes for Tiger to get him through the day.
He's earned every penny he ever made and he has nothing to prove to anyone, but I think he could choose a better bunch of friends.
Martin68
(22,877 posts)Emile
(22,911 posts)unblock
(52,317 posts)Carlitos Brigante
(26,505 posts).
oldsoftie
(12,597 posts)Now that joke slaps!
BWdem4life
(1,694 posts)Am I the only one thinking the penalty would have been less severe if he weren't Black?
tenderfoot
(8,438 posts)eom
BlackSkimmer
(51,308 posts)Right there and then.
Even Penn has more self-control though, so its a moot point.
tenderfoot
(8,438 posts)eom
onenote
(42,759 posts)n October 1985, Penn pled no contest to charges that he assaulted two journalists when they tried to photograph him and Madonna in Nashville in June 1985.[60] He was fined $50 on each of two misdemeanor charges of assault and battery.
In January 1986, Penn was charged for allegedly assaulting Leonel Borralho, Macao correspondent for the Hong Kong Standard newspaper, after he photographed Madonna and Penn as they arrived at their hotel room.
In June 1986, Penn was charged with misdemeanor battery for assaulting songwriter David Wolinski at Helena's nightclub in Los Angeles.[62] Wolinski said Penn accused him of trying to kiss Madonna. Penn pled not guilty to the charge.
In April 1987, Penn violated probation and was arrested for punching a film extra, Jeffrey Klein, on set of the movie Colors. Penn was sentenced to 60 days in jail for this assault and reckless driving in June 1987, of which he served 33 days.
In May 2010, Penn pleaded no contest to a misdemeanor charge stemming from an altercation with photographer Frank Mateljan in October 2009. He was sentenced to perform 300 hours of community service and undergo 36 hours of anger management counseling.
That history of violence didn't stop him from receiving Oscar nominations for the awards handed out in 1996, 2000, 2002, 2004, and 2009 (and winning in 2004 and 2009).
BlackSkimmer
(51,308 posts)We were talking about the Oscars.
obamanut2012
(26,137 posts)They would have been hustled out immediately, not allowed to rant from the floor, then the stage, and then be allowed to go to the parties and have fun, while his victim apologized.
hlthe2b
(102,357 posts)off the stage on behalf of the winner Marlon Brando in 1973.
Effete Snob
(8,387 posts)I guess they'd give him a badge and make him sheriff, like in the movies.
PatSeg
(47,586 posts)BlackSkimmer
(51,308 posts)Seriously?
BWdem4life
(1,694 posts)BlackSkimmer
(51,308 posts)unblock
(52,317 posts)he gets to keep his oscar, he's fined nothing, he's not required to do anything in particular, and he's still eligible to be nominated and win future oscars.
he just can't vote or attend academy functions for 10 years.
i suppose they could have made it 5 or 3 years but merely not attending is a puny punishment for interrupting a live performance to commit a violent act on national television. he tarnished the name of the academy and aside from the attack on an academy presenter specifically, he jeopardized the health and safety of all future academy presenters (never mind that of comedians across the country).
the academy will have to review and step up security for future events because of this, at their own expense, and they're not asking will smith to chip in.
will smith got off with a slap on the cheek, um, wrist.
brush
(53,847 posts)non-grata. Offers, roles, invitations will dry up. His career is severely damaged. Who wants to work with a potentially violent man?
Tree Lady
(11,491 posts)He can find something else to do, maybe volunteer he obviously doesn't need money.
brush
(53,847 posts)unblock
(52,317 posts)It might have been different story had the incident happened off-camera, backstage, with few witnesses.
The combination of letting him keep the Oscar after having let him onstage to accept it (which already was a huge mistake, which I think they agree in hindsight) sends the message that they do *not* want to impact his career any more than will smith himself already damaged it.
brush
(53,847 posts)LenaBaby61
(6,977 posts)What Smith did was not right. Not one bit. But some of these folks saying that Smith should have been arrested, when cops on the regular are STILL getting away with murdering black people post George Floyd being murdered on FILM by ex-cop and now inprisoned Chauvin.
Thankfully, some intuitions have removed support from Wayne/his image/likeness over vile/racist remarks he made about blacks/native-americans during a 1971 Playboy interview. His son had nerve to say he was taken out of context, which is what most racists claim, even when it comes out of their OWN mouths and is ON FILM
USC Will Remove John Wayne Exhibit Due To Actors Racist Statements.
https://deadline.com/2020/07/john-wayne-racist-usc-exhibit-removal-black-lives-matter-1202982937/
https://vThe facts: But Waynes quote is real; it originally appeared in a May 1971 interview with Playboy magazine in which Wayne was responding to a question about whether Angela Davis, a counter-culture activist, communist and professor, was discriminated against by those who wanted to revoke her teaching credentials:
Wayne responded: With a lot of blacks, theres quite a bit of resentment along with their dissent, and possibly rightfully so. But we cant all of a sudden get down on our knees and turn everything over to the leadership of the blacks. I believe in white supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. I dont believe in giving authority and positions of leadership and judgment to irresponsible people.
When asked about his own hiring practices, Wayne said that while he did not discriminate against black actors or crew members, he didnt seek them out either: Ive directed two pictures, and I gave the blacks their proper position. I had a black slave in The Alamo, and I had a correct number of blacks in The Green Berets. If its supposed to be a black character, naturally I use a black actor. But I dont go so far as hunting for positions for them. I think the Hollywood studios are carrying their tokenism a little too far.
The Playboy interview contained one other quote that is frequently shared in meme form, Snopes.com reports. The quote was in response to Playboys question of whether Wayne felt any empathy for Native American for subordinate roles in Westerns:
I dont feel we did wrong in taking this great country away from them, if thats what youre asking. Our so-called stealing of this country from them was just a matter of survival. There were great numbers of people who needed new land, and the Indians were selfishly trying to keep it for themselves.
Kablooie
(18,641 posts)I was a Disney character and was in a dance number for Disneys 50th anniversary.
I was sitting in the green room just about right underneath Sasheen Littlefeather when she gave her speech. We watched it on the TV monitor.
When we left that night John Wayne was by the exit doorway. He seemed in a good mood and said, You kids did a great job. As we left.
regnaD kciN
(26,045 posts)quickesst
(6,283 posts).... the punishment he deserved from the academy. Thinking about it logically, why would the academy give a more severe punishment to someone because he is black for assaulting another person who happens to be black?
SARCASTOGRAM:
All those racists who sit on the board at the Academy Awards must have been twisting themselves in knots trying to figure out a way to not only punish one black man, but two black men at the same time. Unfortunately Smith got the brunt of it when the academy Award racists finally concluded there was no way out of this conundrum. One of the black men, to their dismay, would not be punished.
BWdem4life
(1,694 posts)Perhaps I'm the only one imagining a different possibility: What if a white actor had slapped Chris Rock? Still ten years?
obamanut2012
(26,137 posts)They would have been hustled out immediately, not allowed to rant from the floor, then the stage, and then be allowed to go to the parties and have fun, while his victim apologized. Probably arrested, banned for at least ten years, probably for life.
They would have been pariahs immediately, and their career ruined. And, if their wife was laughing and applauding at Rock's attack like Jada did, she would have also been escorted out.
oldsoftie
(12,597 posts)but were terrified of the optics of "removing the angry black man"
And she's probably right.
Had Sean Penn smacked George cloony I bet he would've been tossed.
obnoxiousdrunk
(2,910 posts)I think it's just you.
oldsoftie
(12,597 posts)I think the uproar would have been WORSE if he were a white man smacking a black man on worldwide TV.
SergeStorms
(19,204 posts)BWdem4life
(1,694 posts)So far the Black people I have discussed this with OFFLINE seem to think a white actor would have gotten a slap on the wrist.
So, I guess the answer is "Yes, on DU you're the only one thinking this."
SergeStorms
(19,204 posts)for anyone else, but if you can find any website where White people support Black people more than we here on DU........
And as for the people you talk to OFFLINE, I can't speak for them either, but I believe they're mistaken.
Have a pleasant evening.
BWdem4life
(1,694 posts)I'm going to ask the question in a protected group on DU instead.
SergeStorms
(19,204 posts)Keep looking and I'm sure you'll find someone who agrees with you. Is it your goal to find others who believe people on DU are racists?
It seems fairly important to you that you do that for some reason.
You'll get nothing more on the subject from me. As I said before, have a pleasant evening.
BWdem4life
(1,694 posts)(or thoughts in my head) on this thread.
I'll be leaving the thread now, bye.
obamanut2012
(26,137 posts)Eliot Rosewater
(31,121 posts)At the same time I think anyone who did this should be banned permanently, probably.
Maybe 20 yrs, something like that.
obamanut2012
(26,137 posts)Skittles
(153,193 posts)Will Smith is a fucking asshole.
PatSeg
(47,586 posts)I never particularly cared one way or another about Will Smith and now I'd be very content to not hear about him for ten years or more.
I love movies, but the celebrity worship in this country has gotten ridiculous. It is no wonder that a lot of it goes to their heads, resulting in the belief that they are more important and entitled than they are. Perhaps this will be a humbling experience for Smith and an opportunity to reevaluate his choices and attitude.
oldsoftie
(12,597 posts)Look who we "worship" the most; many times the WORST examples.
It is really depressing and probably helped contribute to a reality TV star occupying the White House for four years. Now we have people famous for just being famous.
regnaD kciN
(26,045 posts)Can anyone pretend that Ronald Reagan would have been elected Governor of California if he hadn't been a Hollywood star? (We can also add Ahnuld, Clint Eastwood, Sonny Bono, Jesse Ventura, Jim Bunning, Tommy Tuberville, and others who have made the jump from celebrity to officeholder.) Until the country gets to the point where it's immediate reaction to an entertainment or sports star running for public office isn't "cool!" - we're going to remain in big trouble.
PatSeg
(47,586 posts)Such people already had the advantage of name recognition, so it often gave them a head start politically. I was in California when Arnold was elected governor and it was so embarrassing.
greenjar_01
(6,477 posts)Kablooie
(18,641 posts)Academy dues are $400 each year.
Cha
(297,655 posts)this even happened. But since it did.. there has to be consequences.
As if Alopecia isn't hard enough.
💙💛
BlackSkimmer
(51,308 posts)Please. Its not a disability as some keep trying to claim here. My doctor and my hairdresser are the only ones who know this.
Im not a millionaire with all the options Pickett has, but even I dont consider it a hardship for crying out loud.
There are people with real problems, and if this is the worst health problem I ever face, then Ill be grateful. Ive lost friends and family to cancer.
Just no.
oldsoftie
(12,597 posts)Like so many other women do who don't even HAVE it.
I'm a person with Vitiligo. Like you said, if thats the worst health issue I have I will sure consider myself lucky. Even though it can be a pain explaining it to people sometimes!
XanaDUer2
(10,728 posts)Sneederbunk
(14,300 posts)question everything
(47,534 posts)Usually it is the male winner from the previous year.
Sneederbunk
(14,300 posts)BigmanPigman
(51,627 posts)Smith should have gotten a lot worse than that slap on the wrist.
The Grand Illuminist
(1,336 posts)If you are gonna do that then he should also be suspended equal amount of years from any and all consideration to be nominated for an Oscar.
localroger
(3,630 posts)...as long as he puts ticket-buying butts in theater seats and eyeballs in front of online services and pay TV. This will not affect that aspect of his career in any meaningful way.
The Academy is not pissed because he committed a crime against one of their other members. They aren't extra pissed because either he or Chris Rock is black. They're pissed because he made a big public mess on their very own red carpet and they have to clean it up. The ban is tailored to emphasize to him that this is what they are upset about.
Nobody wants to set the precedent of taking oscars away for off-screen and off-camera bad behavior because, let's face it, half the people in that room probably have skeletons in their closet big enough to threaten their legacy if that becomes the norm.
What will probably happen is Smith will find it very hard to win another Oscar no matter what movies he makes, since those are voted on by the other Academy members and as I mentioned before he took a big dump on their festive night of self-fellatio.
The Grand Illuminist
(1,336 posts)nt
localroger
(3,630 posts)He's been playing more cerebral dramatic roles lately, but he can probably improve his bank appeal by getting back to his action ID4-ish roots, just as Robert Downey Jr. did by playing Tony Stark.
The crime he committed is less than a DUI in almost all states, and he wasn't even arrested -- a good percentage of the audience probably committed that later in the evening. They aren't going to revoke prior awards for that.
The fact that he did it during prime time and during the awards is the thing that pissed off the Academy, and I'm honestly surprised at the 10yr ban (I thought it would be 5), but this is a real consequence for Smith. Smith has been trying to build a name for himself as a serious dramatic actor, and this means that he won't see those roles for at least 10 years.
bullwinkle428
(20,630 posts)whistler162
(11,155 posts)Sympthsical
(9,111 posts)If you haven't seen it, this is what an abusive relationship looks like.
People don't much like discussing when men are in abusive marriages, but after everything that's gone on with these two the past four or so years, I'm hard pressed not to see that he needs an intervention and help.
She's just an awful person across the board.
"But her alopecia!" Yeah. That's like .1% of what's wrong with Jada.
Skittles
(153,193 posts)I have never been a fan.
Drum
(9,197 posts)Martin68
(22,877 posts)save face by being the Big Macho. I'd like to hear what his wife thinks.
obamanut2012
(26,137 posts)LiberalLovinLug
(14,176 posts)When I first heard the "punishment", I was thinking.....so what? At many Academy Awards shows there are actors who have previous engagements, or are overseas filming etc...even some of the winners are not there to accept a trophy in person.
The real punishment would have been a ban on winning any academy award for 10 years. Even then there is still the Golden Globes and Emmy's he can run for.
Seems its more about hitting at his ego, not being able to strut around in expensive clothes down the red carpet once a year.
Jetheels
(991 posts)Insurrectionists get a slap on the wrist for trying to overthrow the government of the United States. Or trying to kidnap a Governor.
Response to LetMyPeopleVote (Original post)
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