Unless you watched the program, you likely would have had to search to learn that Coda won Best Picture, Encanto won best animated picture, and Jessica Chastain won best actress. I think you would have known that Will Smith won best actor, though. And it was Smith, of course, who has dominated all Hollywood coverage since.

Feel bad for all involved

I feel bad for everyone involved in the ugly incident. As you know Smith slapped comedian Chris Rock on stage after he made a joke about Jada Pinkett Smith, Will’s wife. She appeared in a stunning green gown with her head closely shaved due to her struggle with alopecia, a hair loss disease.

As we all know

After Rock’s joke, Smith yelled obscenities at the stage, then took to the stage with his now-famous punch. He was allowed to stay and receive his own best actor Oscar. He failed to use his Oscar acceptance speech as a time to apologize. And that’s a shame.

The aftermath

But in what I feel has been an over-covered aftermath, Smith now has apologized to Rock and the Academy. And now he has resigned his own seat on the Academy. He can still be nominated for future Oscars. But he has lost his vote in the Academy, as well as access to screenings.

Lead story on GMA

How on earth could producers of Good Morning America, for example, have felt this was the top story in one of its broadcasts later in the week? How have others continued this coverage so intensely? At least people now know more about alopecia. They also know Hollywood actors are humans, who sometimes make agregious mistakes, especially when their loved ones are concerned.

Other issues

I didn’t watch the show, though normally I do. I just decided the book I was reading held more allure Sunday night. And others have noted the show doesn’t grab audiences the way it used to. There are reasons, I think. While the red carpet interviews are fun, the show tends to get long. The Academy producers have worked to shorten it, however. But this means some awards don’t make the program. That seems a shame.

Chris Rock

The producer of the awards show told Good Morning America that Rock was flying off the cuff with jokes Sunday night. He had a script but used none of the pre-arranged jokes. Wasn’t this a mistake? Did he not know about Jada Pinkett Smith’s well-publicized struggle with alopecia? Wasn’t his so-called joke about her incredibly insensitive? Doesn’t he owe her an apology?

Then there are the complaints

And then there are complaints about diversity of the awards. This is a legitimate concern that goes to who plans and produces films, who hires crews and composers and who selects stories that may be suitable for a racially and LGBTQ diverse cast. Starting in 2024 the awards will require compliance to new diversity rules before works can be submitted for recognition. This has drawn only mild controversy as most feel it’s overdue.

 

Pandemic and Hollywood

During the pandemic few people went to the movies, and most neighborhood theaters were closed. Today, people are starting to trickle back in. But many movies have skipped the box office altogether and premiered on Disney + or other  models. In addition, the awards shows were canceled or scaled back during the height. And the show last Sunday was to mark Hollywood’s great comeback.

Then came the punch

Then came the punch. It dominated the coverage of the awards show. And it didn’t help Hollywood one bit. Neither has the Academy’s slow action on its own investigation. As that crawls along, it just adds to this sorry tale.