The Oscars have always been political, and this year will be no different

Last year, around this time, Donald Trump he called the Oscars too “politically correct,” accusing the show of being useful as a platform for the Democratic Party and suggesting that the Academy had moved away from its initial function of honoring films without recognizing the world around them. Aside from the general and rambling nature of the statement, its implied premise was wrong: the Oscars have always showcased political moments.

As a result, the Academy’s long-standing attempts to achieve wider cultural relevance will surely be honored again this Sunday evening, when the hosts Wanda Sykes, Amy Schumer And Regina Hall they will stage a stellar spectacle in a time of war. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has already been highlighted and condemned by Maria Bakalova at the Critics Choice Awards, from Kristen Stewart at the Film Independent Spirit Awards, and by others in the precursor circuit, and Ukrainian colors and flags were visible on a wide range of red carpets. Despite it seems that Schumer’s desire to bring up the Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy in satellite link probably will not take place because he is obviously busy in something else, certainly the support of his country’s struggle will be a significant factor during the ceremony.

It wouldn’t even be the first time the tragedy in Ukraine has hit the Academy stage. In 2014, the winner as a supporting actor Jared Leto (Dallas Buyers Club) had dedicated his speech to those experiencing the unrest in Crimea, which the Russian forces had recently conquered, as well as in Venezuela: “To all the dreamers out there in the world who are watching this evening … I mean we are here , and while you struggle to make your dreams come true, to live the impossible, we are thinking of you tonight ».

Winners often use their big moment to shed light on causes closest to them, or particularly relevant in the headlines. During the Trump era, such speeches were defined by the increase in hostility towards marginalized populations, including Muslim and Latin American immigrants. In 2019, Spike Lee he used his acceptance speech, for BlacKkKlansman, to mobilize voters in the 2020 elections and underline “the moral choice between love versus hate”. Asghar Farhadi refused to attend the 2017 ceremony despite being nominated. And when the film of him, The Salesman, won best foreign film, the Iranian director wrote a scornful response that was read on the podium in his name: “My absence is out of respect for the people of my country and those of six other nations who were disrespectful to the inhumane law banning the entry of immigrants to the United States ”. And finally, several speeches over the past four years have talked about the #MeToo movement.