In March, Sean Penn won his third Oscar, this one for Best Supporting Actor. one fight after another. Penn did not attend the Oscars, nor did he send anyone to receive the Oscar in his place. It was not a matter of surprise. What surprised me was that Penn actually did a little Oscar-campaigning. Not much, and it was mostly just promotion for the film, but he actually seemed to be playing the Hollywood game for a few months. He attended some premieres, he did a Variety Actors-on-Actors video with Julia Roberts, his ham-like image was on the cover of W Magazine, etc. He stopped gaming after attending the Golden Globes. In a conversation at the Tribeca Film Festival, Penn explained why he stopped promoting or appearing at awards shows after the Globes.
Sean Penn hates selfies and will not go to a public gathering with more than eight people under any circumstances – which is why he was recently absent from the 98th Academy Awards, where he won Best Supporting Actor (his third Oscar).
The revelations came during a conversation between Penn and CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins on Friday afternoon at Spring Studios in lower Manhattan as part of the 25th annual Tribeca Festival, running June 3-14. Due to his long-standing personal and professional relationship with Robert De Niro, one of the fest’s co-founders, Penn is a regular at the fest, and had his usual frank and uncensored disposition during the conversation, ranging from topics like Ukraine (“They will prevail”) to his newfound passion for woodworking and why he has mellowed so much since his tough young days.
After praising his moderator, telling Collins that he “brought real integrity to covering this president” and also adding that “If there was ever a question in anyone’s mind about who would win the staring contest, I think this week was a killer,” Penn began to explain why he was not in attendance at the Oscars.
“This is not just an awards show,” he said. “It would be like if this group were going to an after-party and someone joined in. It always represented social discomfort to me; too many people. I have become frustrated now, committed for life, that I will never go anywhere to be in a designated group of more than eight people.”
The problem is that large public gatherings there only “give you 15 minutes per person”, which triggers “anxiety” for them and is “intimidating”.
“The two times I went there I felt relieved that I won because a lot of people there worked really hard for it,” he said. He added, “There is politics in that thing.”
According to Penn, he spoke to his “One Battle After Another” colleagues before the Oscars and they were all of the same opinion that it would be “better for my mental health” if he did not get involved. So, he instead moved to Ukraine, where he has been working tirelessly to highlight it being under siege by Russia and in need of Western support. Penn still watched the Oscars in Ukraine, where it started at 2 a.m. and ran until 5 a.m., and said he was grateful not to be there.
He admitted, “I really got a chance to enjoy the Academy Awards for the first time.” “It was great.”
After attending this year’s Golden Globes, Penn decided to no longer attend awards ceremonies. “The best thing I could ever muster was relief,” he shared. “Knowing I wasn’t going to do it anymore, I did one the year before. I went to the Golden Globes; I’d never been there before. And that’s where I decided, ‘I can’t do this.’ (This) is the ninth person. And it’s not a dumb result of ‘I don’t want to be around this fake Hollywood’ or anything.
Penn was accosted by selfie-seekers while leaving the Golden Globes, leading him to never attend a public event with more than eight people.
He said, “People should never take selfies with anyone. It’s bad for you; it’s bad for everybody. It’s soul-wrenching.” “This Holocaust grandmother and her paralyzed 6-year-old daughter are driving? This is just wrong.”
(by variety)
I’ve seen and heard actors of Penn’s generation and even older ones complain about selfies, because they came of age in the era of autograph seekers. Nobody wants autographs anymore, they want (multiple) selfies, and Penn’s generation has moved on from that. As far as not going to the Oscars… I think many of us were hoping the Oscar would go to Delroy Lindo or Stellan Skarsgård (two legends who never won), but once Penn’s name was called, I was glad he didn’t go to the Oscars. That must have really ruined the mood. Michael B. Jordan, Jessie Buckley and Amy Madigan got a chance to pose for all their photos without nursing a sore thumb. Also, I think everyone was grateful that they didn’t have to smell Penn smoking cigarettes in the auditorium.
Photos courtesy of Avalon Red, screencaps courtesy of CBS/Golden Globes telecast.
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SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA, USA – FEBRUARY 09: Sean Penn arrives at the 41st Annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2026 – Hammond Cinema Vanguard Awards held at The Arlington Theater on February 9, 2026 in Santa Barbara, California, United States. Image: 1073660674, License: Rights-Managed, Restrictions:, Model Release: No, Image: Sean Penn, Credit Line: Xavier Colin/Images Press Agency/Avalon
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8 September 2025. Los Angeles, California – Vidyot’s Foundation – Sean Penn at the World Premiere of Warner Bros. held at the TCL Chinese Theater in Hollywood. “One on One Fight”, Image: 1035509663, License: Rights-Managed, Restrictions: No sales via cover images/cover media, Model Release: No, Credit Line: Faye Sadou/Avalon
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Sean Penn attending the One Battle After Another London Premiere at Odeon Lux in Leicester Square, London, United Kingdom, Image: 1038057691, License: Rights-Managed, Restrictions:, Model Release: No, Credit Line: Kat Morley/Avalon
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SANTA BARBARA, CALIFORNIA, USA – FEBRUARY 09: Sean Penn and Benicio del Toro arrive at the 41st Annual Santa Barbara International Film Festival 2026 – Hammond Cinema Vanguard Award held at The Arlington Theater on February 9, 2026 in Santa Barbara, California, United States, Image: 1073659982, License: Rights-Managed, Restrictions: , Model Release: No, Picture: Sean Penn, Benicio del Toro, Credit Line: Xavier Colin/Images Press Agency/Avalon
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