Sean Penn claims Will Smith’s slap “wouldn’t have happened” if President Zelenskyy attended the Oscars
Actor Sean Penn has opened up on the Academy of Motion Pictures’ decision to refuse to allow the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy to speak at the Oscars back in 2022, shortly after Ukraine was invaded by Russia.
In a new profile by Variety, Penn told the interviewer, “The Oscars producer thought, ‘Oh, he’s not light-hearted enough.’ Well, guess what you got instead? Will Smith!” The Academy Award was referring to the infamous slap that Smith gave to Chris Rock following a joke he made at the expense of Jada Pinkett-Smith.
“I don’t know Will Smith. I met him once,” Penn added. “He seemed very nice when I met him. He was so fucking good in King Richard.” Smith had won the ‘Best Actor’ Academy Award shortly before he attacked the stand-up comedian.
“So why the fuck did you just spit on yourself and everybody else with this stupid fucking thing?” Penn went on. “Why did I go to fucking jail for what you just did? And you’re still sitting there? Why are you guys standing and applauding his worst moment as a person?”
The actor went on to suggest that had Zelynskyy been allowed to speak at the Oscars, then none of the Will Smith “bullshit” would have occurred. “This fucking bullshit wouldn’t have happened with Zelenskyy,” he said. “Will Smith would never have left that chair to be part of stupid violence. It never would have happened.”
Penn admitted that he decided to destroy his Oscars for the sake of Ukraine, noting, I thought, well, fuck, you know? I’ll give them to Ukraine. They can be melted down to bullets they can shoot at the Russians.”
Watch the video of the incident in question below.
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