Hosted by Conan O’Brien, the winners of the 98th edition of the Academy Awards were recently announced on the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood. Paul Thomas Anderson’s One Battle After One other emerged as the most important winner with six trophies, followed by Ryan Coogler’s Sinners, which secured 4 wins. Amongst the massive winners was veteran Hollywood actor Sean Penn, who bagged the Best Supporting Actor award for his impactful performance in One Battle After One other. This was his third acting Oscar win after Mystic River (2003) and Milk (2008).
Nonetheless, despite the victory, Sean Penn was not present on the ceremony to receive his award, reportedly as a result of a gathering with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Before Sean Penn, there have been several instances of actors missing the Oscars ceremony despite winning. Here’s a take a look at five such actors and the much-talked-about occasions after they skipped the awards night despite their Oscar wins.
1. Marlon Brando – 1973 Oscars (Film: The Godfather)
Legendary Hollywood actor Marlon Brando made an incredible comeback in Francis Ford Coppola’s iconic 1972 gangster drama The Godfather. His powerful performance within the film earned him an Academy Award for Best Actor. Nonetheless, he reportedly declined to simply accept the celebrated award. Sacheen Littlefeather attended the ceremony in his place and said that Marlon Brando couldn’t accept the award, as he was protesting Hollywood’s portrayal of Native Americans.
2. Anthony Hopkins – 2021 Oscars (Film: The Father)
One other iconic actor, Anthony Hopkins, became the oldest actor to win the Best Actor Oscar for his performance in Florian Zeller’s 2020 psychological drama The Father. This was his second ‘Best Actor’ win after The Silence of the Lambs. Nonetheless, he couldn’t attend the ceremony in person. In response to The Independent, for the reason that actor didn’t expect to win, he went to bed and didn’t attend the awards night.
3. Katharine Hepburn – Multiple Oscars (Movies: Morning Glory, Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner, The Lion in Winter, On Golden Pond)
Katharine Hepburn holds the record for probably the most acting Oscars (4). Yet, she never got here to the stage to receive her trophies. She reportedly said, “As for me, prizes are nothing… My prize is my work.” A few years later, in 1974, she finally attended the ceremony to present a memorial award.
4. Paul Newman – 1987 Oscars (Film: The Color of Money)
The legendary actor was nominated several times for the Best Actor Oscar but eventually won the trophy for Martin Scorsese’s sports drama The Color of Money, co-starring Tom Cruise. He didn’t attend the ceremony because he reportedly lost interest after losing six times before.
5. Michael Caine – 1987 Oscars (Film: Hannah and Her Sisters)
One other veteran actor, Michael Caine, couldn’t attend the star-studded ceremony to receive his Best Supporting Actor Oscar for Woody Allen’s comedy-drama Hannah and Her Sisters. He reportedly couldn’t present as a result of scheduling, as he was busy filming Jaws: The Revenge.
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