The ironic, and hilarious, thing about the AMPAS‘ 10-year ban of Will Smith is that people like Harvey Weinstein and Kevin Spacey are still technically not banned from the Oscars.
The Will Smith disbarment, if you want to call it that, seems to be a total and utter performative gesture on the part of the Academy. Sure, Smith deserved some kind of punishment, but a 10-year ban? They couldn’t wait until the inevitable Oprah special aired?
After Jada basically backed away from having any responsibility to do with the slap incident, saying that she doesn’t need a man to protect her, and it was her husband’s idea and reaction, Smith supposedly entered rehab for his aggressive behaviour. That’s that.
So even if Smith is nominated for his upcoming slave epic, “Emancipation,” he’ll be persona non grata at the Oscars until 2032. Smith will be 64 years old by then.