During the 1993 Oscars ceremony, Richard Gere made a remark that would lead to him being banned from the awards for 20 years. The Pretty Woman actor spoke about the incident in an interview with Variety.
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At the ceremony, Richard Gere criticized the government of then–Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping, stating that he might be “watching the Oscars right now with his children and grandchildren.”
He referred to the “horrific human rights situation” in China and Tibet, recalling the annexation of the Tibetan territory carried out by China in 1950.
In his speech, the actor asked the audience to “send love and truth and some kind of sanity to Deng Xiaoping right now in Beijing,” before urging the head of state to withdraw troops from Tibet.
Richard Gere, a practicing Buddhist, received strong applause at the ceremony, but was banned from the Oscars for 20 years after his remark. He was prohibited from attending the event until 2013.
In an interview published on Wednesday (3), he spoke about the controversy.
“I didn’t take it particularly personally,” the 76-year-old actor told Variety. “I didn’t think there were any villains in the situation.”
“I do what I do and I certainly don’t intend to harm anyone. I intend to harm anger. I intend to harm exclusion,” Richard Gere said.
Photos: Instagram @richardgere and Wikimedia Commons. This content was created with the help of AI and reviewed by the editorial team.
