Oscar win, but no appearance! Why did Sean Penn skip the Hollywood's biggest night?

Sean Penn is one of the renowned actors in Hollywood, who has made his mark with some of his best roles in Mystic River, Dead Man Walking, I Am Sam and Carlito's Way, among others. The veteran actor just won his third Oscar for his role in the film One Battle After Another but wasn't there to accept it.

Why did he choose to skip? Let's delve into to know more.

Sean Penn bags an Oscar for One Battle After Another

The Hollywood actor won an Academy Award for Best Actor in a Supporting Role in One Battle After Another, which also stars Leonardo DiCaprio. Interestingly, Sean Penn was the only nominee in the category who didn't attend the ceremony at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles.

Actor Kieran Culkin had announced Penn's winning and said, “Sean Penn couldn't be here this evening or didn't want to, so I'll be accepting the award on his behalf,” before leaving the stage.

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This is not the first time Sean Penn has skipped an award event. He had also missed out on previous award shows as well. Earlier this month, he did not attend SAG's Actor Awards, where he won Best Supporting Actor. In addition, he did not travel to London for the BAFTA Awards last month as well. However, Sean did attend the Golden Globes 2026 on January 11, where he made headlines not just for his nomination but for smoking a cigarette at his table inside the ballroom during the ceremony. Despite skipping other award shows, he was present for this event, seated with cast members like Leonardo DiCaprio.

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When Sean Penn had criticised the Oscars in 2024

Sean Penn had always been vocal about several issues in the past and continues to do so. The actor had previously criticised the Academy Awards in a 2024 speech at the Marrakech Film Festival. He stated, “The Academy has exercised really extraordinary cowardice when it comes to being part of the bigger world of expression and, in fact, has largely been part of limiting the imagination and very limiting of different cultural expressions,” as per the report of Variety.

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He further said, "I don't get very excited about what we'll call the Academy Awards when a film like The Florida Project or I'm Still Here, or you know, Emilia Perez, of the things that are likely to happen this year."

Sean Penn's relationship with awards shows

Given the numbers of times Sean Penn has skipped Hollywood's big events, the actor has always had a difficult relationship with it. In 2023, he told Variety that he had considered melting down the two Oscars he had previously won to provide Ukraine with ammunition in its war against Russia.

He said, “I thought, well, f***, you know? I'll give them to Ukraine. They can be melted down to bullets they can shoot at the Russians.” Although he didn't melt it, Sean Penn did end up giving Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. The actor said, "I told him to keep it and bring it to Malibu after all this is over and his country is safe."

All about Sean Penn

Born in Santa Monica, California, Sean Penn is the son of actor and director Leo Penn and actress Eileen Ryan. His older brother is musician Michael Penn. His younger brother, actor Chris Penn, died in 2006. His father was a Jew whose parents were emigrants from Merkinė in Lithuania, and his mother was a Catholic of Irish and Italian descent.

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Sean Penn is known for his intense roles in Hollywood with films including Milk, The Game, The Thin Red Line, The Tree of Life and Licorice Pizza, among others. He made his directorial debut in the 1991 film The Indian Runner, followed by The Crossing Guard in 1995, The Pledge in 2001 and Into the Wild in 2007.