Sean Penn's no-show at 2026 Oscars sparks buzz after he also skipped BAFTAs

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Sean Penn missed the 98th Academy Awards despite winning the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for ‘One Battle After Another’, creating a lot of buzz around his absence.

This was Penn’s third Oscar win. Earlier, he got the Best Actor award for his performances in ‘Mystic River’ in 2004 and ‘Milk’ in 2009. This time, he beat Benicio del Toro, Jacob Elordi, Delroy Lindo, and Stellan Skarsgard to bag the Best Supporting Actor award. 

Sean Penn also skipped BAFTAs and Screen Actors Guild Awards despite wins

In the veteran actor’s absence, presenter Kieran Culkin and the 2025’s Best Supporting Actor winner took his award, while quipping, “Sean Penn couldn't be here this evening, or didn't want to, so I'll be accepting the award on his behalf.”

This was not the first time Penn was absent from an award function. Last month, he did not attend the BAFTA Film Awards and the Screen Actors Guild Awards despite his wins.

The 65-year-old actor did not share why he missed the award shows. But a report revealed that he was “headed to Europe” and that he also wanted to travel to Ukraine. Penn had been to Ukraine previously when he was co-directing the 2023 documentary ‘Superpower’.

Netizens speculate about Sean Penn's absence from the Oscars

Meanwhile, people online have their own theories and speculations regarding Penn’s absence.

An X user commented, “Is there a reason why Sean Penn wasn’t there? Because that was a bit of an awkward statement and look from Kieran, no? #Oscar.”

Another X user wrote, “I feel like if you don’t show up, you shouldn’t win.”

“It may of been one of the best performances in the movie but maybe you should've given it to someone who was actually there and not the guy who hates award shows,” a comment read.

“Imagine being the others who came for this moment only to lose to the guy who didn’t show up,” a person wrote on X.

A fan of Penn explained, “Sean Penn has stated in interviews that when he works and is doing a film, he doesn't go out of the film set to do interviews, photoshoots, or award shows. He is most likely in the middle of shooting a film.”

“Sean Penn and the Oscars have always felt like an awkward match: he has the trophies, but never really the reverence for the ceremony itself. After years of criticizing the Academy, his absence almost says more than attendance would,” a person added.

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