Will Smith Should Not Be Getting Blacklisted From Hollywood
Courtesy of Pexels.com
April 20, 2022
As I am sure we are all aware by now, Will Smith slapped Chris Rock at the 2022 Oscars, overshadowing a ceremony otherwise worthy of the name the Oscars. With Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Supporting Actor, and Best Picture wins for the magnificent and heart-warming CODA, the 6-win near-sweep for Dune and the 4 nomination and 1 win night for the masterpiece Drive My Car.
But I don’t want to talk about the “incident” itself, or how much of a non-incident it actually was. I’d like to focus on what is happening to Will Smith’s career post-ceremony. Specifically, what seems to be trending towards Smith being blacklisted.
For those unfamiliar with the term “blacklisted”, it essentially means that the person in question will no longer receive work in their field – despite being more than qualified – for one reason or another. For example, Colin Kaepernick has been blacklisted from the NFL after his protesting of police brutality during NFL games, despite still being an NFL-level player at the time of his blacklisting.
To start, Will himself resigned from the Academy, before being outright banned for 10 years. Which, in fairness, was his own decision that he made on his own merit. However, alongside this was call for him to return his award, which is completely stupid. Would there simply be no Best Actor winner for this year? Would the Academy essentially hand out a second-place award?
Two of Will Smith’s upcoming films, specifically the tentatively titled Bad Boys 4, and the Netflix original Fast and Loose – which was to be helmed by John Wick director David Lietch before he dropped out to focus on Fall Guy staring Ryan Gosling for Universal – have both been put on hold as the studios “re-evaluate”. According to the Hollywood Reporter, Smith had received up to 40 pages of the Bad Boys 4 screenplay prior to the Oscars.
It boggles my mind that this is being treated with such a high level of severity and initiative. Regardless of if you believe that Smith was in the wrong, this type of reaction is simply absurd. Especially in comparison to how both Hollywood and the Academy have handled other controversies.
To start, Ansel Elgort, who has multiple allegations ranging from assault to harassment which came to light in 2020, is leading Tokyo Vice this year for HBOMAX. That is on top of praise and awards for his performance in West Side Story, and going on an expansive press tour which included an appearance on The Late Late Show with James Corden.
Roman Polanski has quite literally been a fugitive of the United States since 1978 after forcing himself on a 13-year-old model and received a Best Director Oscar for The Pianist in 2003. They did not expel him from the Academy until 2018.
Casey Affleck received the Oscar for Best Actor in Manchester by the Sea in 2016 despite multiple allegations against him dating back to 2010. He has been continuing to receive work as recently as 2021s Every Breath You Take. He is still a member of the Academy.
So I raise the question: is what Will Smith did anywhere near the level of atrocity that these men (and many more) have committed? And why is he receiving such more harsh punishment than them? It seems like we are making a far bigger deal of this than needs to be made.
juddgebudge • Jun 16, 2023 at 3:50 pm
Clearly it is easy for the author of this article to dub this as not a big deal. He was not the recipient of the slap. Also he is not the one who will be forever immortalized on YouTube and humiliated by the slap. I wasnt there for those other Hollywood offenses you are comparing this incident to. I was highly offended at Will Smith’s behavior. If he gets black listed by others in Hollywood, then in my opinion I think it is deserving. There is no such thing as a unified reaction from the public. No one has the priviledge of saying their reaction is the absolute correct one. There will always be a spectrum of reactions from the public. I am on the spectrum that he should be forgiven but that he needs to face the backlash if that includes being blacklisted. Personally I have lost respect for Will and I cant even bring myself to watch his movies even though I was a big fan of Will.
RandellNonya • Nov 29, 2022 at 3:12 am
the reason Ansel and Casey have not been reprimanded is because as of yet neither of them have had these accuseations proven correct.
where in no won can deny what Will Smith has done.
you say he shouldn’t be blacklisted yet i disagree he should definitely be blacklisted for the entire 10 years of his academy award banned, the only way he shouldn’t be banned is if he agrees to hand over half his salery to Chris Rock and 25% of it to charity
Bobby B • Nov 29, 2022 at 3:09 am
first off all Samantha Geimer who was Roman Polananski’s victim has stated he didn’t force her to have sex. on the contrary he gave her booze and pills.
thats just a little clarification. he also didn’t flee his prison sentence. Roman Polanski plead guilty under a plea deal that stated he would serve time in a mental health facility after which time the judge would rule on how much prison he would serve based on what the mental health professional said should be the term. than after being released from the facility awaiting his sentencing he found out the judged had decided to Illegally throw out the deal and decided he was going to THROW THE BOOK AT HIM. and was going to sentence him to a MASSIVE prison sentence. so he fled.
Gilligan • Oct 28, 2022 at 5:51 pm
Will smith’s behavior at the Oscar’s made him box office poison and made Chris Rock a golden boy. IMHO
Kathy Moraes • Jun 14, 2022 at 5:48 am
To begin …..
A grown professional actor behaving in this manner at a venue such as the Oscars. People in the audience praised him., Not only was Mr. Smith an embarrassment to the Oscar’s an embarrassment to his wife & family stubborn like a child resisting to leave. Mr. Smith says He’s a work in progress a 50 yr old man refuses responsibility of his actions , so why not apologize., oh wait that would verify wrongdoing & of course he did no wrong., Actors get long reigns even Carté Blanche from the press social media & society from making headlines or even an article on negative public behavior., to realize all that is not written simply for the name of the actor who they are or how powerful they are in the movie industry & their connections., the more powerful., we’ll never hear of any wrongdoing. Tv Social Media glorify these fractured human beings who simply believe the world evolves around them & like we grant forgiveness to a child we should give in & say don’t do that again. It’s sad truly not more emphasis is placed on more important stories that touch our countries soul., actor’s they portray a character they know very little of., ., These actor’s have programs just for them discussing what dress someone is wearing at a Gala or other important venue or whose dating who. These actors are handled with kid gloves. Why should you be any different….
So will I receive a less that kind response for my public opinion., an easy target I am I’m not wealthy in the monetary sense nor in any powerful position as a human being., Im retired from Federal Civil service. on a Disability., Though with all I have in this world I really feel I’m the richest person in the world .
A relevant & civil article on the topic of Mr. Will Smith at the Oscar’s 2022
With Sincerity
Mrs. Kathy Moraes