Sean Penn Refuses to Apologize for Green Card Remark Made at Oscars

Sean Penn made a remark at the Oscars last month when he presented the award for Best Picture to Alejandro Irritu for Birdman. That remark raised many eyebrows both on the evening of the Oscars and in...
Sean Penn Refuses to Apologize for Green Card Remark Made at Oscars
Written by Kimberly Ripley
  • Sean Penn made a remark at the Oscars last month when he presented the award for Best Picture to Alejandro Irritu for Birdman. That remark raised many eyebrows both on the evening of the Oscars and in the days and weeks since. Sean Penn refuses to apologize for the remark, and has very little to say about it–even now.

    “Who gave this son of a bitch his green card?” Sean Penn asked from the Oscars stage as he announced Irritu’s name as the award winner.

    “I found it hilarious,” Irritu said after the Oscars.

    “Sean and I have that kind of brutal (relationship) where only true friendship can survive,” he added.

    Alejandro Irritu actually directed Sean Penn in the 2003 film 21 Grams and the two remain close friends to this day.

    “I make on him a lot of very tough jokes that I will not tell you,” Irritu added in defense of Sean Penn’s remark.

    Sean Penn hasn’t said much about his comment, which came up in the media recently as he promoted his upcoming film, The Gunman.

    “I’m always surprised by flagrant stupidity. I keep having more hope,” he said when the outrage over the comment spread.

    “I have absolutely no apologies,” he added. “Anybody who is so stupid not to have gotten the irony when you’ve got a country that is so xenophobic … if they had their way, you wouldn’t have great filmmakers like Alejandro working in this country. Thank God we do.”

    Sean Penn recently made headlines when asked about his ‘girlfriend,’ Charlize Theron. He informed the reporter that she was not merely his girlfriend, but the ‘love of his life.’

    How do you think Charlize Theron feels about the comment Sean Penn made at the Oscars?

    Do you think Sean Penn crossed the line with his remark?

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