The organizers of the Oscars rejected Zelensky’s application for the second time
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For the second year in a row, the American Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi, who had hoped to deliver his speech during the broadcast of the 95th Academy Awards ceremony. As Variety reports, WME agent Mike Simpson asked the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences to include Zelensky’s performance, but was denied. Simpson represents Aaron Kaufman, who together with Sean Penn made a documentary about Zelensky “Superpower”. It premiered at the Berlin Film Festival last month. At the same time, the Oscar organizers refused to comment on the reasons for such a decision. Zelenskyi’s address to the audience at the Academy Awards should have reminded Americans of the full-scale war that is still ongoing in Ukraine. Read also: Nominees for the Oscar 2023 have been announced: Ukraine is on the list Over the past year, the speeches of the Ukrainian president, recorded in the form of a video address, could be seen at the ceremonies of various film festivals and awards. His last appearances at similar events were participation in the Berlin Film Festival in February of this year and the Golden Globe Awards ceremony in January. Last year, after the start of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Zelensky was included at the Cannes and Venice film festivals, as well as at the Grammy ceremony. However, his team failed to agree on the speech of the Ukrainian president at the most prestigious film award in the world – Oscar. A month ago, Zelensky spoke at the Berlinale. Photo: berlinale.de At that time, the American actress Amy Schumer, who was its host, proposed to publicly involve Zelensky in the 2022 Oscar ceremony. “I think this is a great opportunity to at least comment on a few important things… I suggested (to the organizers – ed.) to find a way to somehow involve Zelensky in the broadcast,” Schumer said then. When it became clear in a few days that the American Film Academy had no intention of giving Zelensky a word, Sean Penn said that he would “melt” his Oscar if he was not allowed to speak. The actor stressed that this refusal would be “the most indecent moment in the entire history of Hollywood.” According to the publication, Oscar producer Will Packer refused Zelensky to appear at the ceremony last year. “It’s unclear what the rationale for this year’s rejection is, but the Academy traditionally prefers to … stay away from anything political,” writes Variety. Read also: How to shoot a film in Lysychansk and win an Oscar: An interview with the director of “The House of Chips” Simon Lereng Vilmont
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