Crisis control experts have come up with an ‘anti-slap plan’ for the 2023 Oscars

This Sunday March 12 will take place the 95th edition of the Oscars. Dozens of entertainment industry personalities will gather at the Dolby Theater in Los Angeles, Calif., where, apparently, everything is ready for this gala to be a success, even in crisis gear to avoid embarrassments like that of the 2022 edition is repeated.

Everyone remembers the slap that Will Smith tip to Chris Rock when he made a joke about Smith’s wife’s alopecia. “Get my wife’s name out of your fucking mouth!” were the words that Will Smith he said in front of everyone present at the gala and in front of thousands of viewers around the world, and it is very unlikely that these words will soon be forgotten.

In order to prevent an incident like the one involving Smith and Rock from happening again, the Academy has chosen to create a team of crisis management experts and thus ensure a quiet evening for participants and spectators.

This was confirmed by Managing Director of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Bill Kramer, in an interview for Time magazine. Kramer assured that a whole team has been formed to prevent any situation that could be detrimental to the gala, which is experiencing its lowest figures for a long time. According to the CEO, the first thing to consider was the presenter, and as is known, Jimmy Kimmel will be in charge of directing this ceremony.

In Kramer’s words, “It’s very important to have a presenter who knows how to handle television and live audiences.” Kimmel has not only hosted the Oscars multiple times, but has a very long history on live TV with her show. Jimmy Kimmel Live!. Kramer also pointed out that Kimmel “it doesn’t have too sharp edges”so that the driver does not lend himself to inappropriate comments.

Regarding situations that could go out of the script as happened in 2022, the CEO admitted that it is impossible to consider everything that could go wrong, but the key to this anti-crisis team is how they react to any unforeseen event.

“Because last year, we opened our minds to the many things that can happen at the Oscars. But those crisis plans — the crisis communications teams and structures we have in place — allow us to say this is the group we need to get together quickly,” Bill Kramer said in the interview. “That’s how we all come together. That’s the spokesperson. That will be the statement. And obviously depending on the specifics of the crisis, and hopefully nothing happens and we never have to use them, but we already have frames that we can modify”.

And regarding the new measures that will be taken to avoid more embarrassing moments, the Academy’s big boss confessed that he did not act correctly during the Smith and Rock affair.

“As an institution, we need to act with speed and compassion and engage with our members and candidates in a very transparent manner. Hopefully something like this doesn’t happen again, but we could have acted more quickly. And I’m not just talking about the night of the show. It’s about our response after the show, how we talk about it, how we talk to Will and Chris, and our hosts and members. It was time to bring people together”.

After the incident, Will Smith is banned from the Oscars, so he will not be a guest; Meanwhile, Chris Rock recently said he has no plans to go to the award this year because it’s like “going back to the scene of the crime,” so another altercation between these two may be excluded.

However, the Academy faces a new controversy and it’s all about the Best Actress award. It all started with the appointment of Andrea Riseborough for her leading role in the independent film To Leslie. Although it did not have a big impact at the box office, several of the actress’ colleagues campaigned on their respective social networks for the film to have a better reception from the public.

Many people called this fact unfair, because thanks to the impulse of actors and actresses, Riseborough was among the finalists to win the coveted statuette, leaving aside Viola Davis and its role in The female king. Much of the public felt that, among other things, the Academy considered the most connected actresses in the industry, and although an investigation was conducted, the Academy chose to leave Riseborough’s nomination untouched.

More recently, michelle yeowho acts in the film Everything everywhere at the same time, This caused a lot of controversy when he shared an article on his networks where he gave his full support for his role. The problem is that the article mentions Cate Blanchettwho is also nominated for Best Actress for her role in LIBRARYand under Academy rules, this would be considered dishonest competition.

These are the situations that draw all eyes to the Best Actress award show, and since this is a live-action program, anything can happen (with or without a Crisis Team).