American film producer and the current President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, Janet Yang, has addressed the infamous Oscars slap that marred last year’s awards ceremony.
Speaking at a ballroom full of award hopefuls, she said: ‘I’m sure you all remember we experienced an unprecedented event at the Oscars.’
‘What happened onstage was wholly unacceptable and the response from our organization was inadequate,’ she added.
Actor Tom Cruise, Angela Bassett, Cate Blanchett, and Steven Spielberg were in attendance during her opening remarks.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences took action in response to Smith, 54, storming the stage and slapping Rock, 58, during last year’s Oscars telecast or in the immediate aftermath.
Its board of governors voted to ban Smith from the Oscars and all other academy events for 10 years.
Smith already had preemptively resigned as an academy member.
‘We learned from this that the academy must be fully transparent and accountable in our actions,’ Yang said, ‘and particularly in times of crisis you must act swiftly, compassionately and decisively for ourselves and for our industry. You should and can expect no less form us going forward.’