Actor Sean Penn has called for a boycott of Sunday’s Oscars if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is not allowed to appear via video, vowing to “melt” his own awards in protest.
Penn made his remarks in an interview with CNN host Jim Acosta on Saturday, a day before Hollywood’s inaugural awards show dedicated to how best to counter Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Oscars co-host Amy Schumer said earlier this week that she had suggested inviting Zelensky to perform via video, but it wasn’t clear if organizers agreed with the concept.
“There is nothing greater the Oscars could do than give [Zelensky] an opportunity to speak to all of us,” Penn said.
“To my understanding, it was decided not to do this,” he claimed.
“When it comes down to it, I’ll smell mine in public,” Penn continued, referring to his two Academy Awards for his roles in Mystic River and Milk.
Actor Sean Penn has called for a boycott of Sunday’s Oscars if Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy is not allowed to appear via video
Penn claimed the Oscars organizers decided not to video invite Zelensky (above) to Sunday’s awards ceremony, expressing his outrage
Oscars co-host Amy Schumer said earlier this week she had suggested inviting Zelensky to appear via video, but it’s not clear if organizers are on board
ICYMI: Actor Sean Penn says the Oscars should be boycotted if the ceremony planners decided against Zelensky in the program. pic.twitter.com/4LI2YIiKcD
— Jim Acosta (@Acosta) March 26, 2022
“I pray that didn’t happen. I pray that there have not been arrogant people in my line of work who see themselves as representing the greater good [decided against checking] with leadership in Ukraine,” he continued.
“So I’m just going to hope that didn’t happen. I hope [every attendee] go out if it is.’
A spokesman for the Oscars did not immediately respond to a query from Saturday night regarding plans for the awards show.
Penn, who was in the Ukrainian capital at the start of the Russian invasion to film a documentary, has signed an agreement for his foundation to provide education and housing for refugees in Poland.
“Ukraine is the spearhead for the democratic embrace of dreams. If we allow it to fight alone, our soul as America is lost,” he said in a statement to AFP.
With the Oscars approaching, Hollywood is weighing how or whether to approach Russia’s bloody attack on Ukraine, trying to thread the needle between showing support for Kyiv and appearing too preachy.
“When it comes down to it, I’ll melt mine in public,” Penn continued, referring to his two Academy Awards for his roles in Mystic River (above) and Milk.
Crews set up the red carpet in Hollywood and Highland days before the 94th Oscars at the Dolby Theater earlier this week
As Leonardo DiCaprio’s climate crisis warning and Joaquin Phoenix’s recent outrage over artificially inseminated cows have shown, A-listers rarely shy away from political statements at the Oscars – despite accusations of hypocrisy.
But after Oscars host Amy Schumer came up with the idea of inviting Zelensky to speak at the ceremony via video, some have wondered if less could not be more to acknowledge the crisis.
“It’s all about the way it’s addressed,” said Scott Feinberg, awards columnist for The Hollywood Reporter.
“If it looks like it’s just pandering or lecturing, it’s not going to go down well.
“But if it’s heartfelt and meaningful, then I think it will have a different outcome.”
An example of Hollywood stars using their platform effectively is a GoFundMe website started by Mila Kunis – who was born in Ukraine – and her husband Ashton Kutcher.
It has raised over $35 million for relief supplies and free short-term shelters for Ukrainian refugees in neighboring countries, drawing praise from Zelenskyy himself.
Kutcher and “Mila Kunis were among the first to respond to our grief,” wrote Zelensky, himself a former actor.
“Grateful for their support. Impressed by her determination. You inspire the world. #StandWithUkraine,” he added.
Assistant painter Rick Roberts puts the finishing touches on the Oscar statues as construction continues on the red carpet for the 94th Annual Academy Awards at the Dolby Theatre
Ukrainian-born actress Mila Kunis (R) and her actor husband Ashton Kutcher have launched a GoFundMe campaign for Ukraine which has raised more than $35 million
In a viral video message, “Terminator” star Arnold Schwarzenegger appealed to Russian head of state Vladimir Putin to end the “senseless” war in Ukraine.
And many lesser-known filmmakers have chronicled the conflict in Ukraine since 2014, when Putin annexed Crimea and backed separatist rebels in the Donbass region.
For example, the documentary A House Made of Splinters and the drama Klondike both premiered at the Sundance Festival in January and explored the impact of the long-running conflict in eastern Ukraine on ordinary families and children.
In Hollywood awards season, references to the Ukraine crisis have been a constant theme since the invasion began, from statements of solidarity with the people of the nation to explosive-laden tirades against Vladimir Putin.
“We stand with the hundreds of thousands of refugees fleeing the war, both Ukrainian and of other ethnicities and nationalities who are being denied safe haven,” Oscar nominee Kristen Stewart said at the Film Independent Spirit Awards.
A view of the Oscar red carpet in front of the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, California on Saturday, one day before the 94th Academy Awards
Presenter Megan Mullally struck a saltier tone.
“I think we speak for everyone here when we say we hope for a quick and peaceful solution – specifically, fuck off and go home, Putin,” she said.
Schumer, who probably won’t get away with similar language on TV, recently said she’s pitched the idea of inviting Zelensky to “broadcast a satellite or do a tape or something just because there are so many eyes on the Oscars.” “.
While the Academy hasn’t commented, the idea appears to have been scrapped, with Schumer acknowledging that “there’s definitely a pressure to say, ‘This is a vacation, let people forget — we just want to have tonight. ”
To Feinberg, “it seems like they realize that’s unmusical.”
‘I mean, he’s dealing with matters of life and death here. And yes, he’s a former actor, but it looks like it really blew their minds,” he told AFP.
The organizers “are thinking hard about the show about how to handle this without making their show highly political or divisive,” he added.
While the Oscar producers might not end up raising the issue at all, the evening’s winners likely will anyway.
“If I were a betting man, I would say almost every speech will mention Ukraine and the atrocities that are going on there,” said Clayton Davis, editor of the Variety Film Awards.