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After slapping comedian Chris Rock in the middle of the Oscars ceremony, Will Smith resigns from the Academy. Under the influence of a disciplinary procedure, the actor preferred to take the lead himself.
With our correspondent in Miami, David Thomson
« My actions at the Oscars were shocking, painful and inexcusable is what Will Smith writes in his press release announcing his resignation from the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
Sunday night, live on stage in Los Angeles, his slap in the face of comedian Chris Rock for a bad joke about his wife’s baldness had stunned celebrities and millions of spectators but that did not prevent Will Smith from receiving a Academy Award for Best Actor for his role in the film The Williams Method.
But this week, in a letter to members, Academy leaders said they were outraged by his qualified behavior ” unacceptable and harmful “. The Board of Directors of the Academy has launched disciplinary proceedings and must rule on April 18 on possible sanctions including suspension or exclusion.
Will Smith therefore preferred to take the lead by resigning. He will no longer be able to vote but his work remains eligible for rewards. However, the proceedings against him are not over. Some go so far as to ask that his Oscar be withdrawn when others recall that such a sanction had not been applied against producer Harvey Weinstein, who was nevertheless convicted of rape.
►Also read: An Oscar ceremony marked by the slap of Will Smith to Chris Rock
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