When people say someone is “banned from the Oscars,” they’re usually talking about one of two things the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) can do: expel a person from membership (which bars them from Academy events and strips voting privileges) or formally ban them from attending the Oscars and other Academy events for a set period. As of the most widely reported Academy actions, the list of people who’ve been barred this way is short and every case involves either serious misconduct or a major rules violation.
Carmine Caridi
Actor Carmine Caridi became the first widely reported Academy expulsion in modern times after a “screeners” scandal. In 2004, AMPAS’ Board of Governors voted to revoke his membership after he admitted he had passed along Oscar screener tapes—materials meant only for Academy voters under a signed agreement—to another person, and those copies ultimately ended up online. The Academy treated it as a major integrity breach of the awards process and expelled him.
Harvey Weinstein
Producer Harvey Weinstein was expelled from the Academy in 2017, shortly after a wave of sexual harassment and sexual assault allegations became public. In its statement at the time, the Academy condemned the conduct described in the allegations in unusually blunt terms, calling it “repugnant” and “abhorrent,” and voted to remove him from the organization. The action meant he was no longer welcome at Academy events, including the Oscars.
Bill Cosby
Bill Cosby was expelled in 2018. AMPAS said its Board of Governors acted under its Standards of Conduct, and the expulsion came soon after Cosby’s criminal conviction at the time. The Academy framed the move as part of enforcing values tied to “respect for human dignity,” and the decision removed him from membership and Academy activities.
Roman Polanski
Roman Polanski was expelled the same day as Cosby in 2018 under the Academy’s then-newly emphasized conduct standards. The decision was tied to Polanski’s long-running legal and ethical controversy: he pleaded guilty in 1977 to unlawful sexual intercourse with a minor and later fled the U.S., remaining a fugitive from U.S. sentencing for decades. AMPAS formally removed him from membership, which also bars participation in Academy events.
Adam Kimmel
Cinematographer Adam Kimmel was expelled in 2021 after reporting highlighted his past as a registered sex offender and his criminal record. AMPAS confirmed it had taken action and removed him from the Academy, again positioning the decision as part of enforcing conduct expectations for members.
Will Smith
Will Smith’s case is different because it wasn’t just expulsion—it was a time-limited event ban. After Smith slapped Chris Rock onstage during the 94th Academy Awards broadcast in March 2022, the Academy’s Board barred Smith from attending the Oscars and all other Academy events for 10 years, starting April 8, 2022. Smith had already resigned his membership before the vote, but the ban specifically blocks him from showing up at the ceremony (even though the Academy noted he remains eligible for future nominations and awards).
A common misconception: Richard Gere
A lot of “banned from the Oscars” lists online still include Richard Gere because of his unscripted political remarks while presenting in 1993. But recent reporting (including from outlets that dug into the rumor) says Gere was not formally banned by AMPAS, it was more about producers not inviting him back for a long stretch, not an official Academy no-entry ruling.
