“There is a position that we hold in this community, and if we’re not part of the solution, we’re part of the problem”, said Smith, a two-time Oscar nominee for his roles in “Ali” and “The Pursuit of Happyness”.
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In an interview with USA Today, Lee said although his 1989 film Do the Right Thing lost the best picture award to Driving Miss Daisy, his work had stood the test of time.
Lee, Smith, Pinkett-Smith and documentary director Michael Moore are the only major stars so far to announce they will not attend the Oscars. “When I look at the series of nominations of the academy, it’s not reflecting that beauty”.
Mark Ruffalo poses for photographers upon arrival at the premiere of the film “Spotlight” at a central London venue, London, Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016.
Lee has said he and his wife will be skipping the ceremony too, though he has said he is not calling for a wider boycott. For the second year in a row, none of the nominees in the top categories are minorities, which has spurred a week of outrage and tinsel town soul-searching.
He said: “There’s probably a part of that in there, but for Jada, had I been nominated, and no other people of colour were, she would’ve made the video anyway”.
“This is so deeply not about me”, he added.
“They called me to go present with Pharrell and Common”.
The board members of the Academy Awards will meet on January 26 to fight perception that the Academy is “racist” or “elitist” following allegations by actors and commoners for the lack of diversity in its nominations, reports Variety.
The issues confronting the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences are related to wider challenges in the country, Smith asserted: “There’s a regressive slide towards separatism, toward racial and religious disharmony”. I was the first black board member, the first black conductor – I hate “first black” because that means ‘only.’ I want the young African-American kids to know that the door is open. “The Academy reflects the industry and then the industry reflects America”, he said.
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Quincy Jones will only present at the Academy Awards if he can speak about “the lack of diversity” in the nominations.
