In the last year, Mr Volodymyr Zelensky it has been welcomed with open arms by awards, film festivals and even the New York Stock Exchange. However, when it comes to getting TV time on television’s most coveted show – the Oscars – the Ukrainian leader is treated coldly.

For the second year in a row, the Academy snubbed Zelensky, who hoped that after his appearance at the Berlin Film Festival (remotely) last month, he would have … a virtual slot on Sunday’s Oscars telecast on ABC. Sources say WME’s powerful agent Mike Simpson appealed to the Academy to include the comedian-turned-politician, but he was turned down. The Academy declined to comment, according to Variety.

“Zelensky’s ‘overtures’ to the Oscars come as polls show American support for aid to Ukraine has weakened,” writes Variety.

Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, Zelensky appeared via satellite at both the Cannes and Venice film festivals and the Grammy Awards. At the Golden Globes in January, Sean Penn introduced Volodymyr Zelensky, who repeated the message of the past 12-plus months that Ukraine will win the war against Russia.

Simpson was involved because he represents Aaron Kaufman, who co-directed with Penn the Zelensky documentary “Superpower,” which debuted at the Berlin Film Festival in February. During various press events for the film, Penn called on the US government to step up its military support to Ukraine, including the delivery and procurement of long-range precision-guided missiles. In December, Zelensky visited the US to meet with the US president and urge Congress to send more military aid to Ukraine.

But not everyone is on board with giving Zelensky more screen time. Last year, Oscars producer Will Packer ruled out an appearance by Zelensky. Sources say Packer expressed concern that “Hollywood was only paying attention to Ukraine because those affected by the conflict are white.” Instead, Hollywood has ignored wars around the world that affect people of color, he argued. It’s not clear what the reasoning behind this year’s rejection of the Oscars is, but the Academy traditionally prefers to focus on input from the film community and avoid anything political.

In September, Zelensky’s team approached the Toronto Film Festival about the leader’s appearance via satellite, but there was also a negative response.