Will Smith blasts Oscars for lack for diversity and says he’ll be skipping awards ceremony along with wife Jada

Will Smith broke his silence this morning about the controversy surrounding his wife’s proposed Oscar boycott, saying that he also won’t be attending this year’s ceremony because he believes that Hollywood is ‘going in the wrong direction’ when it comes to diversity.

The 47-year-old star of Concussion sat down with ABC’s Robin Roberts on Good Morning America to share his thoughts on this year’s overwhelmingly white Academy Award nominations, and his wife Jada Pinkett Smith’s videotaped call to action

‘I think that diversity is the American superpower. That’s why we’re great,’ he told Roberts in the exclusive interview.

‘So many different people from so many different places adding their ideas, their inspirations, their influences to this beautiful American gumbo. … so when I look at the series of nominations of the Academy, it is not reflecting that beauty.’

A growing number of Hollywood heavyweights, including Spike Lee, Michael Moore and George Clooney, have publicly criticized the Academy for failing to nominate people of color in any of the major acting categories this year.

CRITICS SLAM ACADEMY AWARDS FOR LACK OF DIVERSITY  

‘This institution doesn’t reflect its president and it doesn’t reflect this room. I am an Academy member and it doesn’t reflect me, and it doesn’t reflect this nation,’  – David Oyelowo

‘You have to ask the question – are black people normally playing petty criminals? Are women always the love interest or talking about men? Are gay people always stereotyped? Are disabled people ever seen at all?’  – Idris Elba

‘… the idea that we could go two years in a row, where 40 actors could be nominated and none of them were black, is just crazy,’  – Michael Moore

‘I can’t help ask the question: is it time that people of color, recognize how much power and influence we have amassed that we no longer need to ask to be invited anywhere,’  – Jada Pinkett Smith

‘How is it possible for the 2nd consecutive year all 20 contenders under the actor category are white? And let’s not even get into the other branches. 40 white actors in 2 years and no flava at all. We can’t act?! WTF!!’  – Spike Lee

‘Hollywood is like the Rocky Mountains, the higher up you get the whiter it gets and this year’s Academy Awards will be yet another Rocky Mountain Oscar,’  –Rev Al Sharpton 

‘Somebody asked was I gonna watch the mother****ing Oscars. F*** no! What the f*** am I gonna watch that bulls*** for? They ain’t got no n***** nominated. All these great movies and all this great s*** ya’ll keep stealing from us. F*** you! F*** you!’ – Snoop Dog to TMZ 

‘Why is this a conversation that we only have once a year? Every year we get all fired up and then the rest of the year nobody says anything…. So I’m not going to boycott, but I’m going to continue to bitch as I have all year round because I’m tired of seeing movies where no one is represented except a bit of the population, not all of it,’   – Whoopi Goldberg

‘If you think back 10 years ago, the Academy was doing a better job. Think about how many more African Americans were nominated…. And all of a sudden, you feel like we’re moving in the wrong direction,’   – George Clooney