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Film Academy Response to Will Smith Slap was 'Inadequate,' Group's President Says

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was criticized for allowing Smith to remain in his seat. Reuters
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was criticized for allowing Smith to remain in his seat. Reuters
    Asharq A-Awsat
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Film Academy Response to Will Smith Slap was 'Inadequate,' Group's President Says

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was criticized for allowing Smith to remain in his seat. Reuters
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was criticized for allowing Smith to remain in his seat. Reuters

Hollywood's film academy did not adequately respond to Will Smith's slap of Chris Rock at the Academy Awards last March, the organization's president said on Monday at a gathering of this year's Oscar nominees.

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences was criticized for allowing Smith to remain in his seat, and accept the best actor trophy, after he assaulted Rock on stage.

"What happened on stage was totally unacceptable," academy president Janet Yang said at the annual Oscar nominees' luncheon in Beverly Hills. "And the response from the organization was inadequate.

"We learned from this that the academy must be fully transparent and accountable in our actions, and particularly in times of crisis," she added.

Smith resigned from the academy after the incident, and the academy banned him from attending the Oscars for 10 years. He remains eligible to be nominated for and win Academy Awards.

At Tuesday's lunch, nominees including Tom Cruise, Steven Spielberg, Michelle Yeoh and Angela Bassett schmoozed and posed for a group photo.

Winners will be announced at a ceremony televised live on Walt Disney Co's ABC on March 12.

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Entertainment

Showbiz in 2024: Taylor Swift, Oasis and Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Make Headlines

A man walks past a mural of Oasis band members Liam and Noel Gallagher by artist Snow Graffiti on a wall in Whitefield, near Manchester, Britain, August 31, 2024. (Reuters)
A man walks past a mural of Oasis band members Liam and Noel Gallagher by artist Snow Graffiti on a wall in Whitefield, near Manchester, Britain, August 31, 2024. (Reuters)
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Showbiz in 2024: Taylor Swift, Oasis and Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Make Headlines

A man walks past a mural of Oasis band members Liam and Noel Gallagher by artist Snow Graffiti on a wall in Whitefield, near Manchester, Britain, August 31, 2024. (Reuters)
A man walks past a mural of Oasis band members Liam and Noel Gallagher by artist Snow Graffiti on a wall in Whitefield, near Manchester, Britain, August 31, 2024. (Reuters)

From Taylor Swift's record-breaking Eras tour to Sean 'Diddy' Combs' arrest, 2024 saw various stories from the entertainment world dominate headlines.

Below are some of the biggest.

* Taylor Swift won more awards, released another hit album and performed her Eras tour, the first to surpass $1 billion in revenue. Her Vienna shows were cancelled after authorities foiled a planned attack. Swift closed Eras' European leg in London before she wraps it completely in Vancouver on Dec. 8.

* US rapper and producer Sean "Diddy" Combs pleaded not guilty to charges he used his business empire, including his record label Bad Boy Entertainment, to sexually abuse women.

Combs has denied wrongdoing and his lawyers have argued the sexual activity described by prosecutors was consensual.

* One Direction member Liam Payne was found dead after falling from a third-floor hotel room balcony in Buenos Aires, triggering an outpouring of tributes from fans.

* Oasis announced a series of reunion gigs. Fans waited long hours in virtual queues to buy tickets only to find hiked prices as part of a "dynamic pricing" scheme, sparking probes into Ticketmaster over the sale.

* A New Mexico judge dismissed involuntary manslaughter charges against actor Alec Baldwin, agreeing with his lawyers that prosecutors and police withheld evidence on the source of the live round that killed cinematographer Halyna Hutchins when he pointed a gun at her on the set of Western "Rust" in 2021.

Armorer Hannah Gutierrez was convicted of involuntary manslaughter and sentenced to 18 months.

The film premiered at a low-key Polish film festival in November.

* Harvey Weinstein's 2020 conviction for sexual assault and rape was overturned by New York's highest court, reopening the landmark case that fueled the #MeToo movement.

* Singer Justin Timberlake pleaded guilty in a New York State court to a lesser traffic charge than drunk driving - driving while ability impaired - after he was arrested when police spotted him failing to obey a stop sign and veering off lane.

* Beyonce's "Cowboy Carter" became the first album by a Black woman to land at No. 1 on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart.

* "Inside Out 2" became the highest-grossing animated film of all time, taking $1.698 billion at the global box office.

* The world said goodbye to: actors Donald Sutherland, James Earl Jones, Maggie Smith, Shannen Doherty, Carl Weathers and Louis Gossett Jr., music supremo Quincy Jones and singer-songwriter Kris Kristofferson among others.