Will Smith is BANNED from the Oscars for 10 years
Will Smith is BANNED from the Oscars for 10 years for slapping Chris Rock – but will be allowed to keep his award for Best Actor: Star says he ‘accepts and respects’ the decision
- Smith is barred from attending any Academy events for the next ten years but he can keep his Oscar
- The academy’s 9,000 members had been ‘completely split’ on the decision
- There were ‘hundreds of WhatsApp groups’ where they were arguing over it
- Smith slapped host Chris Rock on March 27 for making a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s shaved head
- He later won the Oscar for Best Actor for his role in King Richard
- Smith apologized for the violence, and Jada said she wished he hadn’t slapped Rock
- Rock has been quiet on the controversy, saying only that he was ‘processing’ it
- Hollywood was split on whether or not the actor should get to keep his award
- Whoopi Goldberg defended him, saying ‘he’ll be back’ and that he has nothing to worry about
- Smith himself apologized and his wife Jada – who the slap was on behalf of – also said she wished he hadn’t done it
- Chris Rock has said little of the incident other than ‘I’m still processing it’
Will Smith has been banned from the Oscars for 10 years for slapping Chris Rock, but will be allowed to keep his award for Best Actor.
In a statement, the Academy blasted Smiths ‘unacceptable’ and ‘harmful’ behavior that ‘overshadowed’ the entire evening.
‘During our telecast, we did not adequately address the situation in the room. For this, we are sorry. This was an opportunity for us to set an example for our guests, viewers and our Academy family around the world, and we fell short — unprepared for the unprecedented.
‘The Board has decided, for a period of 10 years from April 8, 2022, Mr. Smith shall not be permitted to attend any Academy events or programs, in person or virtually, including but not limited to the Academy Awards.
‘We want to express our deep gratitude to Mr. Rock for maintaining his composure under extraordinary circumstances. We also want to thank our hosts, nominees, presenters and winners for their poise and grace during our telecast.’
In a statement on Friday afternoon after the decision was reached, Smith told Deadline: ‘I accept and respect the Academy’s decision.’
He had already resigned from the Academy last Friday.
Infamous: Rock was slapped by Smith after making a joke about wife Jada’s bald head while presenting Best Documentary at the Oscars last Sunday
The board of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences will meet this Friday to discuss how to punish Will Smith for his onstage assault of Chris Rock at this year’s Oscars ceremony. Above, Smith dances at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party in Los Angeles on March 27
ACADEMY’S FULL STATEMENT
The 94th Oscars were meant to be a celebration of the many individuals in our community who did incredible work this past year; however, those moments were overshadowed by the unacceptable and harmful behavior we saw Mr. Smith exhibit on stage.
During our telecast, we did not adequately address the situation in the room. For this, we are sorry. This was an opportunity for us to set an example for our guests, viewers and our Academy family around the world, and we fell short — unprepared for the unprecedented.
Today, the Board of Governors convened a meeting to discuss how best to respond to Will Smith’s actions at the Oscars, in addition to accepting his resignation. The Board has decided, for a period of 10 years from April 8, 2022, Mr. Smith shall not be permitted to attend any Academy events or programs, in person or virtually, including but not limited to the Academy Awards.
We want to express our deep gratitude to Mr. Rock for maintaining his composure under extraordinary circumstances. We also want to thank our hosts, nominees, presenters and winners for their poise and grace during our telecast.
This action we are taking today in response to Will Smith’s behavior is a step toward a larger goal of protecting the safety of our performers and guests, and restoring trust in the Academy. We also hope this can begin a time of healing and restoration for all involved and impacted.
The 54-person Board of Governors met on Friday morning after furious debate between its 9,000 members raged over the last 12 days in hundreds of WhatsApp groups.
The slap divided Hollywood and the public, with some insisting he should be stripped of his Oscar and not be rewarded for violence while others said dismissed it and mocked it on social media.
Smith slapped Rock on-stage after the comedian made a joke about his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith’s shaved head. Pinkett-Smith has been open in the past about her struggles with alopecia.
After the slap, Smith returned to his seat and screamed ‘keep my wife’s name out of your f*****g mouth.’
He the then won the Oscar for Best Actor in his role as Richard Williams, in the film King Richard. He used his speech to apologize to the Academy and to Rock, and he later posted an apology on Instagram.
Rock has kept quiet on the issue, speaking out only to say he was ‘processing’ what happened.
With the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences set to determine Friday whether Will Smith will be stripped of his Best Actor Oscar after slapping comedian Chris Rock on the show’s stage, it appears there may be a split among those making the decision.
The organization’s 54-member board of governors will make the ultimate call – but are having a difficult time coming to a consensus and are ‘almost entirely split,’ a source told The Sun.
Many said their hesitation toward taking the drastic step of rescinding Smith’s Oscar was based on the fact that sexual predators Harvey Weinstein and Roman Polanski have not had their Oscars taken away.
‘The decision was made earlier this week to expedite the hearing in the wake of Will’s resignation, and during that call it was clear that the decision would go to the wire.’
‘The general consensus is that it would be madness and rank hypocrisy to take such a stand now,’ the source said. ‘But, as we all know, Hollywood is a law unto itself, frankly.’
The academy’s 9,000 members are also apparently split on the decision, the source said.
The discussion is going on in ‘hundreds’ of WhatsApp groups containing the thousands of members.
David Rubin, the president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, told the board Wednesday that he’s moving a meeting originally scheduled for April 18 to this Friday at 9 a.m. PST.
‘Following Mr. Smith’s resignation of his Academy membership on Friday, April 1, suspension or expulsion are no longer a possibility, and the legally prescribed timetable no longer applies.
‘It is in the best interest of all involved for this to be handled in a timely fashion,’ he wrote in a letter.
The board has a few punishments it could hand out. They could make Smith ineligible for future awards or bar him from attending future ceremonies temporarily or permanently.
Pinkett-Smith supported her husband after he defended her by striding to stage to smack Rock
They could also strip Smith, 53, of the Academy Award for best actor that he won less than an hour after the on-stage assault – though the last time the board rescinded an award was more than 50 years ago.
Rubin said the meeting was only originally scheduled for April 18 to give Smith enough notice, which is no longer necessary, according to Variety, which first published Rubin’s letter.
The virtual meeting will take place over Zoom.
The Academy has only rescinded one Oscar. In 1969, it found that the documentary Young Americans, which won best documentary that year, had actually been released in 1967.
‘The list of those I have hurt is long and includes Chris, his family, many of my dear friends and loved ones, all those in attendance, and global audiences at home,’ Smith said.
‘I betrayed the trust of the Academy. I deprived other nominees and winners of their opportunity to celebrate and be celebrated for their extraordinary work. I am heartbroken.’
Though the board could technically take back his statuette – given for his portrayal of tennis coach Richard Williams in King Richard – there’s little precedent for such a drastic move.
Speaking on The View the day after the March 27 ceremony, actress Whoopi Goldberg, who is a serving Governor for the Academy’s Actors branch, defended Will’s actions, reasoning that ‘sometimes you behave badly.’
Apology: Will has since apologized in an Instagram post, stating that he was ’embarrassed’ by his actions, which shocked the ceremony attendees, producers and viewers
Smith slapped Rock, 57, in front of the world on live television after the comedian made a joke about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett-Smith’s hair loss, caused by alopecia.
Whoopi said on Monday’s show: ‘I think it was a lot of stuff probably built up.
‘I think he overreacted… I think he had one of those moments where it was like [God damn] it, just stop. I get it, not everybody acts the way we would like them to act under pressure. And he snapped…
‘Sometimes you get to a point when you behave badly. I myself have behaved badly on occasion.’
Whoopi’s co-host Sunny Hostin said that she was ‘surprised [Will] wasn’t escorted out’, and questioned if there was the possibility of Smith’s Oscar being taken away.
Whoopi replied: ‘We’re not going to take that Oscar from him.
‘There will be consequences I’m sure, but I don’t think that’s what they’re going to do, particularly because Chris said, ‘Listen, I’m not pressing any charges.”
Tough times: Chris Rock was spotted Tuesday looking somber on a solo outing in New York City after his brother slammed Will Smith and said the Academy should strip him of his Oscar
‘It eats at me’: Meanwhile his 42-year-old younger brother Kenny told the Los Angeles Times that he has had trouble repeatedly watching the now infamous moment involving his brother from last week’s Oscars ceremony
Bond: Chris is seen with brother Kenny in an Instagram post
Speaking to Us Weekly, an unnamed insider said Pinkett-Smith wishes her husband never slapped Rock.
‘It was in the heat of the moment and it was him overreacting,’ the source said. ‘He knows that, she knows that. They’re in agreement that he overreacted.’
They also alleged that Pinkett Smith is ‘not a wallflower’, nor ‘one of these women that needs protecting’.
‘He didn’t need to do what he did,’ they added.
Rock, on the other hand, has barely addressed the assault at his stand-up gigs.
Appearing at a surprise set at New York’s Comedy Cellar on Tuesday night, Rock said: ‘Lower your expectations, I’m not going to address that s***,’ a source told Page Six.
Earlier that day, he was spotted walking around the city by himself. The 57-year-old comedian walked with his hands in his bomber jacket Tuesday morning.
Meanwhile his 42-year-old younger brother Kenny told the Los Angeles Times that he has trouble repeatedly watching the now infamous moment involving his brother from last week’s Oscars ceremony. He said Smith should be stripped of the Best Actor trophy.
He said: ‘It eats at me watching it over and over again because you’ve seen a loved one being attacked and there’s nothing you can do about it.
‘Every time I’m watching the videos, it’s like a rendition that just keeps going over and over in my head.’
Kenny continued to express his distaste for the A-list actor’s actions.
He said: ‘My brother was no threat to him and you just had no respect for him at that moment.
‘You just belittled him in front of millions of people that watch the show.’
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