The last installment of the Oscar Awards was marred by controversy. During one of his comedic routines, Chris Rock made reference to the health condition suffered by Jada Pinkett Smith. Will Smith, her husband, took the stage and hit Rock for her disrespect, becoming, for better or worse, the most remembered moment of the night. Fortunately, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) already has everything ready for another possible scandal. The solution? A crisis team will be in charge of keeping the Oscars 2023 under control.
The news was revealed by Bill Kramer, executive director of the Academy, in a talk he had with Time. With the existence of the aforementioned team, everyone will avoid unpleasant surprises like last year.
“We have a whole crisis team, something we’ve never had before. We have thought of many scenarios. It is our hope that we are prepared for anything that we cannot anticipate right now, but only in case it does happen.”
So far, few are the embarrassing moments that have marred the delivery of the Oscar. Will Smith’s slap to Chris Rock, and the mistake with the Best Picture (in 2017) are the closest examples. Although Smith will not participate in the Oscars for many years, the team is already prepared for any disrespect, scandal, inappropriate behavior or accident that could happen at the ceremony.
“Because of the slap last year, we’ve opened our minds to a lot of things that can happen at the Oscars. But these crisis plans – the communication teams and structures that we have put in place – allow us to say that this is the group that we need to get together quickly. So we all come together. And obviously depending on the details of the crisis – let’s hope something doesn’t happen – we already have frameworks in place that we can modify,” he added.
So far, the Academy has not released any further details of this crisis team. It is not known if its members will be visible during the broadcast, and it was also not explained what the possibilities are that they have thought of. However, during the last nominees breakfast, Janet Yang, president of the Academy, reminded everyone that the Oscars are a time for celebration (via Variety).
“They must act with speed, compassion and decisiveness, for us and for our industry. They should not and cannot expect less from us in the future,” she mentioned.
The 95th Academy Awards will take place next Sunday March 12, 2023. Will there be a successor to Will Smith?
Juan Jose Cruz I am one of those who always defended Robert Pattinson as Batman and can see the same movie in the theater up to 7 times. My guilty pleasure? Low budget horror movie.