Academy's Board of Governors to Meet Wednesday to Discuss Will Smith Fate

The Academy’s Board of Governors is expected to meet Wednesday to discuss Will Smith’s physical assault on Chris Rock at the Oscars. Smith could face disciplinary measures, and possibly expulsion, and the forfeiture of the Oscar he won on Sunday for his performance in King Richard.

The rules give the Board of Governors considerable latitude in adjudicating misconduct cases brought for review.

Most cases aren’t publicized and don’t garner media attention. But in recent years, the Academy has ruled on members caught up in the #MeToo movement that shook up the industry starting in 2017.

The academy expelled Harvey Weinstein, Bill Cosby, and Roman Polanski in the wake of the #MeToo movement. Weinstein was expelled ‘for “sexually predatory behavior and workplace harassment” while Cosby and Polanski were expelled “in accordance with the organization’s Standards of Conduct” stemming from their sexual assault cases.

Both Weinstein and Polanski were allowed to keep their Oscars for Shakespeare in Love and The Pianist, respectively, which suggests Smith is likely to hold onto his statuette, whatever disciplinary action he may receive.

Little transparency about the proceedings can be expected from the board, which is comprised of members from each of the Academy’s various branches. But recent public comments provide a hint at which way the winds are blowing. Among the board members is Whoopi Goldberg, who used her position on ABC’s The View to speak sympathetically about Will Smith.

“I think he overreacted,” she said on Monday’s show. “I think he had one of those moments where it was like G.D. it, just stop. I get it, not everybody acts the way we would like them to act under pressure. And he snapped.”

She also said: “We’re not going to take that Oscar from him.”

The board’s current president is David Rubin, a longtime Hollywood casting director who has cast Smith in multiple movies, including Men in Black and Wild Wild West.

Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences President David Rubin speaks during a press conference, in Los Angeles, California, September 21, 2021. (VALERIE MACON/AFP via Getty Images)

The Academy’s standards of conduct are vague about the kind of behavior it expects from its members.

Members must “behave ethically by upholding the Academy’s values of respect for human dignity, inclusion, and a supportive environment that fosters creativity,” the guidelines state.

“The Academy asks that members embrace their responsibility to affirm these principles and act when these principles are violated. There is no place in the Academy for people who abuse their status, power or influence in a manner that violates recognized standards of decency.”

Smith’s assault on Rock was a major embarrassment for the Academy, which was looking to mount a comeback from last year’s disastrous telecast that only drew 10 million viewers.

Smith has publicly apologized to the Academy and Rock, saying on Instagram, “I am embarrassed and my actions were not indicative of the man I want to be. There is no place for violence in a world of love and kindness.”

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