Sean Penn Pledges to Publicly ‘Smelt’ His Oscar If Academy Awards Decides Against Inviting Zelensky to Speak

(Mediaite)

Actor Sean Penn pledged to “smelt” his Oscar in public, should the organizers of the Academy Awards opt not to invite Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to speak virtually.

“There is nothing greater that the Academy Awards could do than to give him that opportunity to talk to all of us,” Penn told CNN’s Jim Acosta on Saturday.

Penn’s comments come after co-host Amy Schumer revealed she pitched the idea of Zelensky making a video appearance.

“There are so many awful things happening that it seems hard to focus on which one,” Schumer said. “I actually pitched…a way to have Zelensky satellite in or make a tape or something just because there are so many eyes on the Oscars. I am not afraid to go there, but it’s not me producing the Oscars.”

According to a New York Post report from Friday, Zelensky has been in talks about a possible video appearance, though the idea is still being debated and it’s unclear whether he would appear via a taped message or live.