Oscars are perhaps the most coveted awards in Hollywood. However, Richard Gere, best known for American Gigolo, doesn’t have one.
This is because the Academy had banned the actor from attending the event due to a political speech he made in 1993 about what he claimed was the Chinese government’s occupation of Tibet.
The comments were unscripted and came during his presentation for the Best Art Direction award.
Decades later, the actor defends his speech and tells Variety“I didn’t think there was anything wrong with that situation. I do what I do, and I certainly don’t mean to hurt anyone.”
Although the Infidelity The star returned to the Academy Awards ceremony in 2013 and added a sarcastic comment: “Seems like if you stay long enough they forget they banned you.”
Richard’s criticism of the Chinese government stemmed from his long-standing views on Buddhism.
He recently served as executive producer Wisdom of happinesss, which is about his friend the Dalai Lama, who is also the spiritual leader of Buddhists in Tibet.
“I’ve never worked so hard to get a movie I’m associated with out into the world,” he said.
“I think this is so important that I have to put my last bit of energy into making this visible to people. It will at least put a seed in the minds of people who see it.”
Wisdom of happiness had an earlier theatrical release on October 16.
