The Academy has been hit with plenty of criticism as the world observes its handling of “The Slap.”
In the hours after Will Smith slapped Chris Rock for joking about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith, at this year’s Oscar Awards, the Academy released a statement saying it “does not condone violence of any form,” which they were quickly criticized for.
Seeing as the show allowed Smith to accept his award for Best Actor – which he even received a standing ovation for – many viewers were of the opinion that the Academy was very much condoning violence by not taking further action against the actor, which they’ve since done.
On April 1st, the Aladdin star formally resigned from the organization, and just a week later, it was publicly announced that Smith has been banned from any Academy events, virtually or in real life, for the next decade.
“During our telecast, we did not adequately address the situation in the room,” a letter from David Rubin and Dawn Hudson admits. “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.”
Smith has since responded, sharing that he “accepts and respects” the Academy’s decision, but from the looks of things, many people on Twitter do not.
“BREAKING: Will Smith banned by the Hollywood Academy, 12 days after he slapped Chris Rock,” English broadcaster Piers Morgan wrote earlier today. “It took the same Academy 40 years to ban Roman Polanski after he was convicted of raping a child.”
Another user pointed out, “Harvey Weinstein and Roman Polanski never had their Oscars rescinded, John Wayne was never expelled, and the Academy never apologized to Hattie McDaniel – just in case anyone was looking at the Academy as some moral beacon.”
Check out more reactions below, and let us know what your thoughts are in the comment section.
