For years, award shows have been facing criticism for favoring white actors and actresses to win the night’s biggest awards. This year’s Oscars, however, stood out for an entirely different reason.
If you watched the Oscars or even if you didn’t, you know what happened because every headline tells you. If you look up “Oscars 2022,” every search result is about Will Smith slapping Chris Rock and it almost sounds like it was made up. The altercation happened after Rock made a joke, but this one was particularly insensitive.
Jada Pinkett Smith, Smith’s wife, had opened up about her experience with Alopecia in 2018 and has spoken publicly about her condition. Alopecia is an autoimmune disorder that causes sudden hair loss. She has come to terms with her condition and even shaved her head last July.
Rock had made a joke about seeing Pinkett Smith in the next G.I. Jane movie, which stars a bald Demi Moore. Getting a little laugh from the audience, Rock laughed it off and claimed it was a good joke. Smith seemed to also share the same humorous moment, it was clear that Pinkett Smith did not as the camera showed her rolling her eyes. When the camera panned back to Rock on stage, you could tell something unexpected was about to happen. Smith stood up from his front row seat next to his wife and went right up to Rock and slapped him in the face for disrespecting his wife on such a big platform.
Absolutely stunned, all Rock could do was laugh it off and look around to producers to see if something would happen. Once Smith sat back in his seat, he repeatedly yelled back at him to keep his wife’s name out of his mouth, in which it also included some profanity. People did not know how to react to this because it’s an award show and it could all be an act, but it is also The Oscars and events like these don’t happen on live national television.
Public Display of Toxic Masculinity
Toxic masculinity revolves around the desire for a man to act tough and powerful in front of others. While engaging in violence on live national television, Smith was demonstrating just that, by defending his wife with unnecessary action. Not to say his reaction was not justifiable, but it was not appropriate, especially given the setting. However, his actions sent a poor message as to what it takes to “protect women” along with America’s desentization of public violence.
This whole debacle took the internet by storm by capturing the attention of millions and countless headlines. But these headlines took away from the historical moments that occurred on Sunday. History was made at the 2022 Oscars, but all people remember was a public display of toxic masculinity.
The Real Oscar News
Once again, the Oscar nominations this year failed to provide the diversity that we desired. However, it is important to not overlook those who belong to marginalized groups who did not get the chance to be highlighted this year, but to uplift the ones who were as they are paving the path.
Women in general made history at the Oscars this year, bringing home a record 17 awards.
Best Supporting Actress
It was a historic night for many women, especially Ariana DeBose. Debose was the first openly queer and Afro-Latina woman to win an individual film prize at the Screen Actors Guild awards only a month ago. She became the first to be nominated and to win an Oscar, and one of the biggest ones of the night – Best Supporting Actress. Her role as Anita in “West Side Story” has created a lot of buzz and has brought awareness to her journey as a queer woman in the entertainment industry. She is an empowered woman who seeks to empower others who may face the same battles as her.
“To anybody who has ever questioned your identity or you find yourself living in the gray spaces, I promise you this: there is indeed a place for us,” Debose said in her acceptance speech that should have set the tone for the night.
Best Directing
Jane Campion, a New Zealand film director, best known for directing the film “The Power of the Dog,” a western drama featuring Benedict Cumberbatch and Kirsten Dunst. She is now best known for being the third woman ever to win the award for Best Directing at the Oscars. The second one was only last year when Chloé Zhao won for “Nomadland.” Only 3.1% of directing awards have been given to women.
Best Adapted Screenplay
While also being nominated for Best Directing, the film “Coda” was nominated alongside “The Power of the Dog” for Best Adapted Screenplay. Sian Heder became the first woman in 93 years to win that category. The film “Coda” is a drama musical following a 17-year old girl with deaf parents. The film took home three of the night’s awards and also highlighted one of the first deaf actors to win an Academy Award.
Best Supporting Actor
Troy Kotsur is a deaf American actor and director who starred in the accredited film “Coda.” His co-star, Marlee Matlin, was the first deaf actress to win an academy award back in 1987. This was also the first film to win an Oscar that debuted at Sundance and was distributed by Apple TV, the streaming service. Disabled actors don’t often get to play in disabled roles, such as Kotsur’s, which goes to show the lack of representation in the past. A historic win for the deaf community, Kotsur gave his acceptance speech in American Sign Language while inspiring deaf children and adults with his courage and perseverance.
“I’m so happy because finally, this validates that everyone is respecting our work as actors in every way. It’s been 35 years and I’ve been waiting for another deaf actor to join me.,” Matlin said.
Moving Forward
While these individuals continue to inspire the many people who admire them, they are hopefully also setting precedent for award shows to come. Smith has apologized for the chaos he caused and has since resigned from the Academy. This means that he does get to keep his award as well as attend future Oscars ceremonies and even be nominated again if they deem him worthy. What the resignation ultimately means is that he will no longer have a say in what films get nominated and win as a member of The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. However, his actions do not take away from the fact that the 2022 Oscars will be forever stained by his behavior and not the historical triumphs of the winners.