Will Smith Banned From Oscars For 10 Years
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences banned Will Smith from attending all Academy events, including the Oscars, for the next 10 years, multiple news outlets reported Friday, following his slap of comedian, Chris Rock, at the Oscars ceremony.
Academy President David Rubin and CEO, Dawn Hudson said in a letter obtained by multiple media outlets, "Smith shall not be permitted to attend any Academy events or programs, in person or virtually, including but not limited to the Academy Awards" for 10 years, starting on April 8, 2022.
Smith’s resignation from the Academy and ban from future events do not prevent him from being nominated for or winning future awards.
In the letter, Rubin and Hudson apologized for failing to "adequately address the situation in the room," and expressed "deep gratitude" to Rock for “maintaining his composure under extraordinary circumstances."
The Academy began disciplinary proceedings against Smith on March 30, and originally scheduled a board meeting to discuss possible punishments for April 18, but Rubin moved up the meeting after Smith resigned from the Academy last week, as the group was no longer legally required to provide him with a 15-day notice that he could be suspended or expelled.
The Academy’s Board of Governors is a 54-person group made up of professionals from every film industry discipline, including actress, Whoopi Goldberg and director, Stephen Spielberg.
Rock joked about Smith’s wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, who has lost her hair due to alopecia, an autoimmune disorder, during the Academy Award ceremony last month. Smith walked on stage and slapped Rock after the joke, before returning to his seat and yelling at Rock to "keep my wife’s name out your f***ing mouth."
Smith apologized to Rock and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences in an Instagram post the day after the ceremony.
Rock declined to file a police report and said during a stand-up show in Boston he is "still kind of processing" what had happened.
Smith resigned from the Academy last week and said he would accept any punishment imposed on him by the group.
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