No to Volodymyr Zelensky’s speech at the 2023 Oscar ceremony scheduled for Sunday 12 March. For the second time, the organizers of the Oscars have rejected the request of the Ukrainian president to speak online at the award ceremony. Variety writes it, explaining that the request of the Ukrainian leader had been forwarded by Mike Simpson, a well-known entertainment agent. But the Academy declined, despite Zelensky appearing on video at the Grammy Awards and Golden Globes.
Zelensky got in touch with Simpson through his client Aaron Kaufman, director of the documentary Ukraine Superpower with Sean Penn.
Last year, Oscar producer Will Packer declined Zelensky’s request, noting that the war in Ukraine involves only whites and that previous tragedies involving people of color had not received as much attention. However, there was a minute of silence for Ukraine during the ceremony.