Oscars bar the door to Chartier -- UPDATED
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Don’t look for Nicolas Chartier reaction or podium shots at the Oscars on Sunday. The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has taken the modest, if still notable, step of docking the ‘Hurt Locker’ producer’s tickets to the Kodak Theatre. The decision comes on the heels of Chartier sending out an e-mail message to a group that includes Academy members asking voters to choose ‘The Hurt Locker’ for best picture over the ‘$500 million’ film, i.e., ‘Avatar.’
‘Nicolas Chartier has been denied attendance at the 82nd Academy Awards as a penalty for violating Academy campaigning standards. Chartier had recently disseminated an email to certain Academy voters and other film industry figures in which he solicited votes for his own picture and disparaged one of the other contending films,’ the Academy said in a statement Tuesday. ‘The executive committee of the Academy’s Producers Branch, at a special session late Monday, ruled that the ethical lapse merited the revocation of Chartier’s invitation to the Awards.’
The ruling stops short of the more draconian measure of making the film ineligible for best picture. But the docking is nonetheless significant -- it marks the first time in recent memory that tickets have been taken away from a nominee. Chartier was not immediately available for comment.
[UPDATED, 6:26 PM: The Academy confirms that this is the first time a specific nominee has ever been barred (studios have had their ticket allotment reduced, as Sony Pictures Classics did for ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ in 2001. The group also says that Chartier will also not be allowed in as any other nominee’s guest. Meanwhile, on another ‘Hurt Locker’ front, our colleague Patrick Goldstein has just posted a story about a potential lawsuit from the soldier who says the movie was based on his experiences. You can read that story here.]
Full statement after the jump.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced today that, should “The Hurt Locker” be announced as the recipient of the Best Picture award at Sunday’s ceremonies, only three of the picture’s producers will be present for the celebration. The fourth of the film’s credited producers, Nicolas Chartier, has been denied attendance at the 82nd Academy Awards as a penalty for violating Academy campaigning standards. Chartier had recently disseminated an email to certain Academy voters and other film industry figures in which he solicited votes for his own picture and disparaged one of the other contending films. Academy rules prohibit “casting a negative or derogatory light on a competing film.” The executive committee of the Academy’s Producers Branch, at a special session late Monday, ruled that the ethical lapse merited the revocation of Chartier’s invitation to the Awards. The group stopped short of recommending that the Academy governors rescind Chartier’s nomination. If “The Hurt Locker” were to be selected as Best Picture, Chartier would receive his Oscar statuette at some point subsequent to the March 7 ceremonies.
-- Steven Zeitchik
