People are still reacting to Sunday’s Oscars ceremony after nominee Will Smith slapped guest presenter Chris Rock for telling a joke about his wife, Jada Pinkett Smith. Perspectives are still being shared on social media and via press and entertainment outlets on not only the situation but also Smith being allowed to stick around to give an acceptance speech instead of being removed from the building.
Director Pedro Almodóvar (“Parallel Mothers”) this week wrote a special Oscars diary for IndieWire (translated into English from Spanish), where the filmmaker commented towards the end of the diary on the slap overshadowing some of the standout awards handed out. Almodóvar also gave his take on Smith’s bizarre Best Actor acceptance speech for “King Richard,” which he likened to that of a “cult leader.”
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“I refuse to let that episode mark the gala and be the protagonist of a ceremony where many more things happened and of much greater interest. For example, ‘Drive My Car,’ without a doubt my favorite film of the year, won Best International Feature Film. And also ‘Summer of Soul,’ my favorite documentary.”
Almodóvar added how close he was to the altercation itself, his reaction to it, and reiterated previous anti-violence sentiments. Not to mention, focusing on Smith’s speech being in the realm of “fundamentalist.”
“Still, as I said, I was very close to the protagonists. What I saw and heard produced a feeling of absolute rejection in me. Not only during the episode but afterward, too, in the acceptance speech — a speech that seemed more like that of a cult leader. You don’t defend or protect the family with your fists, and no, the devil doesn’t take advantage of key moments to do his work.”
“The devil, in fact, doesn’t exist. This was a fundamentalist speech that we should neither hear nor see. Some claim that it was the only real moment in the ceremony, but they are talking about the faceless monster that is the social media. For them, avid for carrion, it undoubtedly was the great event of the night.”
It doesn’t feel like this going to end any time soon, even after Smith’s apology, as the Academy poured gasoline on the situation recently after claiming they asked Smith to leave the event, but the actor refused. Despite the statement that is likely meant to insulate themselves, they knew Smith should have been escorted out but allowed him to remain to accept his award.