Danny DeVito isn’t holding back when it comes to the Oscars‘ diversity controversy.
“It’s unfortunate that the entire country is racist,” the actor told the Associated Press at the Sundance Film Festival on Saturday. “This is one example of the fact that even though some people have given great performances in movies they weren’t even thought about.”
DeVito, 71, joins the long list of actors who have recently spoken out about the lack of African-Americans nominated for Academy Awards, including Jada Pinkett Smith, Spike Lee and Best Supporting Actor nominee, Mark Ruffalo.
“We are living in a country that discriminates and has certain racist tendencies, so sometimes it manifests itself something like this, and it’s illuminated,” he continued. “But just generally speaking we’re racists. We are a bunch of racists.”
The “It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia” star was joined by fellow screen vets Don Cheadle and Sam Neill, who also weighed in on Hollywood’s race issue.
“Again, this is dealing with the symptom, not starting at the root cause,” Cheadle, 51, shared.
“I mean, I’m baffled by it, I would have thought that Idris Elba (“Beasts of No Nation”) and Sam Jackson (“The Hateful Eight”) would have been a shoo-in for a nomination,” Neill, 68, expressed.
While it’s unclear if DeVito and company will boycott this year’s ceremonies, “Concussion” star Will Smith has already disclosed that he and wife Jada, 44, will not be attending.
“We’re uncomfortable to stand there and say this is OK,” Smith, 47, said during an Q&A with “Good Morning America” last week.
Amid the slew of reports pressing him to step down, Chris Rock is still set to host the 88th Annual Academy Awards on Feb. 28.