The 95th Academy Awards will take place in March 2023. The year is brimming with some stellar storytelling and great talents emerging and re-emerging on the cinematic horizon. One of the most important Oscars categories is ‘Best Actor’. This year actors like Paul Mescal, Colin Farrell, Austin Butler, Bill Nighy, and Brendan Fraser are nominated for the coveted trophy. In 2022, Will Smith won the trophy for ‘King Richard’, but the ceremony was tainted with his infamous slapgate.
During the 94th Annual Academy Awards, there were many highlight-worthy moments. But, Will Smith and Chris Rock took away all the thunder. Chris Rock was presenting his monologue and he took a dig at the alopecia condition that Jada Pinkett Smith has. He made a ‘G.I. Jane’ joke. This did not sit well with her husband Will Smith and he went on stage and slapped him across the face and he mumbled ‘Keep my wife’s name out of your f***** mouth’. It created a lot of controversies and Smith is now barred from attending the event for ten years. However, now to avoid any such skirmish, the Academy has appointed a crisis team.
CEO Bill Kramer Assures A Plan If Anything Goes Wrong During The Oscars Night
The Oscars slapgate sent ripples throughout the industry dividing it on whether Will Smith did the right thing or not. Attendees and people online were enraged that Will Smith was still allowed to be present at the show after the slap. He even won the award that night for ‘King Richard’ in the ‘Best Lead Actor’ category. So, now the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences is ready to handle any such crisis if it arises.
During an interview with The Times, the CEO of the Academy, Bill Kramer said, “We have a whole crisis team, something we’ve never had before, and many plans in place. We’ve run many scenarios. So it is our hope that we will be prepared for anything that we may not anticipate right now but that we’re planning for just in case it does happen”.
In Case You Missed: “I Accept And Respect”- Will Smith Banned From Oscar Events For 10-Years After Chris Rock Slap
The Slap “Opened The Minds” Of The Board
During the Oscars 2023 Nominee Luncheon, the current President of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Janet Yang admitted that they were not quick to the slap in 2022. Yang said, “What happened onstage was fully unacceptable and the response from our organization was inadequate”.
She continued, “We learned from this that the Academy must be fully transparent and accountable in our actions, and particularly in times of crisis you must act swiftly, compassionately, and decisively for ourselves and for our industry. You should and can expect no less form us going forward”.
So, the crisis team may be the extension of this assurance. Kramer continued, “Because of [the slap] last year, we’ve opened our minds to the many things that can happen at the Oscars,” Kramer continued. “But these crisis plans — the crisis communication teams and structures we have in place — allow us to say this is the group that we have to gather very quickly. This is how we all come together”.
He continued, “This is the spokesperson. This will be the statement. And obviously depending on the specifics of the crisis, and let’s hope something doesn’t happen and we never have to use these, but we already have frameworks in place that we can modify”.
You Might Also Like To Read: Will Smith Holds His Oscar While Making Fun Of The Slapgate Incident On TikTok
