Oscars 2022: Fans ‘very annoyed’ after Ryusuke Hamaguchi cut off during acceptance speech
‘I don’t want to hear another awards show talk about how they value diversity ever again after cutting off Ryusuke Hamaguchi 15 seconds into his speech,’ one fan wrote
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Fans were “very annoyed” at the Academy Awards after Japanese director Ryusuke Hamaguchi was played off during his acceptance speech for the Best International Feature.
Hamaguchi won the category for his critically acclaimed film Drive My Car, which is also nominated for the Best Picture Oscar alongside Licorice Pizza (Paul Thomas Anderson), Belfast (Kenneth Branagh), and The Power of the Dog (Jane Campion).
Hamaguchi and his drama are also nominated in the Best Director and Best Adapted Screenplay Oscar categories.
If Drive My Car wins Best Picture, it will become the second non-English language film after Parasite (2020) to ever win the category.
While accepting the Best International Feature Oscar, Hamaguchi thanked his various collaborators, the film’s actors and distribution partners before the band – with Travis Barker on drums – cut the director off mid-speech.
However, Hamaguchi objected while on stage, indicating he wasn’t done, and continued speaking for a few more moments.
Fans reacted to the alleged snub, writing that it “truly, truly sucks” that the Oscars had “disrespected” the director at the ceremony.
One social media user tweeted: “The disrespect to Ryusuke Hamaguchi… Cutting him off twice and pushing him off the stage. Very annoyed.”
Another criticised the Oscars’s perceived diversity push with a tweet that read: “I don’t want to hear another awards show talk about how they value diversity ever again after cutting off Ryusuke Hamaguchi 15 seconds into his speech.”
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
Watch Apple TV+ free for 7 days
New subscribers only. £8.99/mo. after free trial. Plan auto-renews until cancelled
The Academy Awards have often been condemned for the lack of representation for actors and directors of colour, LGBT+ talent, and women in Hollywood.
One fan said they had “mad respect” for the Best Director contender being able swing enough time to thank everyone on his list, writing: “Second best part of the show so far is Ryusuke Hamaguchi successfully convincing the play off music to stop while he thanks more people in his acceptance speech. He almost got them to stop a third time!”
You can follow along with our Oscars 2022 live blog here.
Click here for a list of the winners, updated live as the ceremony progresses.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments