An Oscars to remember

The 94th Academy Awards aired last night. Although many incredible films were praised, such as CODA, we can’t forget about Will Smith smacking Chris Rock in the face. Jocelyn Stone reports.

The night was filled with many emotions celebrating the achievements of great films, as well as diversity and inclusion in Hollywood. However, the event everyone is talking about is when Will Smith slapped Chris Rock after joking about his wife Jada Pinkett. USC students react on this incident.

“I see where he’s coming from because he went through an act of emotion. I like definitely felt bad, especially if I had a loved one who was just mocked on stage,” said USC freshman Jazmine Aquino.

On the other hand, USC graduate student Erin Li feels Smith’s act isn’t justified:

“I’ve never expected such a famous black celebrity will like behave like that. Then I think, OK, he’s cool, because that’s one way for him to express his ideas and his anger. But for me, maybe I would not choose this way to express my opinions”.

Adding to the mixed reviews, some students feel sympathy with both the slapper and the slapee. “It doesn’t seem like that big of a deal to me, You know, its just a slap. It seems like people are making it into this big crisis, you know,” says USC film major, Aidan Barringer.

Crisis or not, this year’s Oscars also brought continued attention to the diversity in Hollywood. There were three hosts, two of whom are women of color. Additionally, the event highlighted the film CODA, staring deaf actors. The movie showcases deaf culture and sign language through following the story of the only hearing person in a deaf family. As a member of the hard of hearing community herself, USC student, Yaya Shi, shares her thoughts on CODAs award for best picture.

“I really resonated with the experience and then with the sign language itself and then this perspective that they take. So then I feel like I really can feel it in my heart. And then in terms of the Oscar, I just. I feel good about it, and I know that the deaf community is feeling really proud to see that he’s up there and he’s also signing,” said Shi.

Despite this film being a great milestone for diversity and inclusion in Hollywood, Shi believes there is still room for more progress to be made in the future.

“I think CODA is a great first step just to see more of those stories being told and then giving more access and opportunity to deaf actors or filmmakers or deaf artists or whatever they do because it doesn’t necessarily have to be about the disabilities itself”.