March 12, 2024
Al Pacino finally spoke up on his mess up at the Oscars this year.
The 83-year-old actor’s clarification comes after he was called on stage at the 96th annual Academy Awards ceremony to announce the nominees and the winner for Best Picture on Sunday, March 10.
Making an “unintentional” blunder, Al Pacino forgot to announce the 10 films that were up for the category and went ahead to open the winners’ envelope.
In his exclusive statement to US Weekly, the Scarface actor addressed his mistake and said, “There seems to be some controversy about my not mentioning every film by name last night before announcing the Best Picture award.”
“I just want to be clear it was not my intention to omit them, rather a choice by the producers not to have them said again since they were highlighted individually throughout the ceremony. I was honored to be a part of the evening and chose to follow the way they wished for this award to be presented,” he said.
Al Pacino admitted that his actions might’ve hurt the sentiments of the filmmakers who were nominated as it’s “a milestone” on its own.
“I saw this as someone who profoundly relates with filmmakers, actors and producers so I deeply empathize with those who have been slighted by this oversight and it’s why I felt it necessary to make this statement,” he explained.