Will Smith has hinted he will continue to boycott the Oscars in 2017 after making a stand against the lack of diversity at this year’s ceremony.
The 48-year-old actor and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith joined a range of celebrities in protesting against the apparent lack of diversity amongst the Academy Award nominations for 2016, and has hinted that he will do the same this year, regardless of whether he receives a nomination or not.
Speaking on ‘Lorraine’, the ‘Suicide Squad’ actor said of the award show: "You know what, there was a time in my life when box office was everything.
"You know, if you didn’t get nominated you were under the bed for three weeks and all of that.
"It’s always fun to be invited to the party, but that’s all it can be."
But the ‘Concussion’ star isn’t holding a grudge against the Academy, as he said earlier this year he was "very pleased" at the speedy response given by the board who said they aimed to double its number of female and minority members by 2020.
He said at the time: "I was very pleased at how quickly and aggressively the Academy responded. But I want to be very clear about the spirit of what I’m saying. This is far beyond me. This has nothing to do with me, this has nothing to do with awards. Awards, that’s a really frivolous reason for me to put my hand up and make a statement. For me, this is much more about the idea of diversity and inclusion."
Meanwhile, Idris Elba previously claimed a "change is coming" to the Oscars in the wake of the diversity row.
The ‘Luther’ star told BANG Showbiz in February: "The discussion that’s going on about the Oscars is fantastic. A change is coming, definitely.
"I do believe it, otherwise I wouldn’t be here. And I think everyone feels it, it’s a big subject and there is more work to do."
Will Smith plans to continue Oscars boycott
