Academy prevents Zelensky from giving speech during Oscars telecast
For the second year in a row, the Academy denied the Ukrainian president the opportunity for air time at the ceremony to talk about the war.
The Oscars will not feature an appearance by President Zelensky during the awards gala telecast for the second consecutive year. As reported by Variety, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences refused to give the Ukrainian leader airtime to denounce the Russian attacks that his country has been facing for more than a year.
Since then, Zelensky has appeared at a number of entertainment festivals and galas to denounce Putin and Russia for the invasion of Ukraine. However, the film industry's most important gala will not allow him to do so despite the fact that the president had the support of House Republican Mike Simpson. The congressman, according to Variety, asked the Academy to give a few minutes to the comedian-turned-politician, but they refused. The Academy declined to comment on the matter.
Sean Penn criticized the Academy for not allowing Zelensky to speak
Simpson is not Zelensky's only supporter. Actor Sean Penn spoke out in support of the politician last year. The Oscar winner for his role in Mystic River said that if the Academy did not allow the Ukrainian president to speak, it would be part of "the most obscene moment in all of Hollywood history":
Penn did not stop there. In November 2022, the actor visited Ukraine and gave one of his two Oscar trophies to Zelensky. According to statements reported by Deadline, he did this to express "continuing shame towards the Motion Picture Academy":