Hawn: "It used to be elegant," now Oscars a "politicized ... microcosm" of society's ills

At a time when the movies are clawing for relevance, Hawn offers a vital reminder of how Hollywood was once all about glamour and fun. “It used to be elegant,” she says of the Oscars. “I’m not old-fashioned, but sometimes jokes are off-color. And I’m missing reverence. Things have become politicized. I want to see people in awe. I want to see people believing again. I want to see people laughing more in a way that isn’t just at someone else’s expense.”

For Hawn, the Academy Awards double as a metaphor for what ails society. Example A: Will Smith slapping Chris Rock onstage last year. “It’s indicative of our culture right now,” Hawn says. “I mean, you could look at it and say, ‘What the hell just happened?’ Somebody lost control. They lost their self-regulation. Their bigger brain wasn’t thinking, and they did something that was horrendous and also showed no remorse. That, to me, is a microcosm oftentimes of our world. Chris was brilliant — totally held on to and controlled his emotions, was able to stand with dignity. That’s an example of what we would like our world to look like. But, unfortunately, it isn’t right now.”

[It’s been going downhill since the 1980s, but it has accelerated over the last 25 years or so. They’re unwatchable, and that’s too bad. Hawn nails it. — Ed]