Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Entertainment
Stuart Heritage

How much does Sean Penn hate selfies? Enough to invoke the Holocaust

Sean Penn, pictured at a Cannes film festival press conference in 2023
Don’t shoot me … Sean Penn, pictured at a Cannes film festival press conference in 2023. Photograph: Gonzalo Fuentes/Reuters

One of the highlights of this year’s Oscars was Sean Penn’s win for best supporting actor. Not because he deserved it – although in truth he probably did – but because he didn’t turn up, which simultaneously made the ceremony a little bit shorter and spared the world a Sean Penn acceptance speech.

At the time, much was made about the reason for Penn’s absence. Since he spent Oscars night in Ukraine, the leading theory was that he was making a profound point about the frivolity of backslapping awards shows during times of tangible crisis. Turns out that isn’t quite the case, though. Sean Penn skipped the Oscars because he hates selfies. We’ll get to the exact quote in a minute, and you should probably brace yourself for it, but he really, really hates selfies. A lot.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.