Not everyone was happy about “Green Book” winning best picture. According to reports from inside the Dolby Theatre, “BlackKklansman” director Spike Lee was visibly upset by the announcement and tried to leave the ceremony before the speeches had concluded. “I’m snakebit. Every time someone’s driving somebody, I lose,” he later told reporters backstage, in reference to his breakout film, “Do the Right Thing,” losing the Oscar for Best Screenplay to “Driving Miss Daisy” in 1990. “I thought I was court side at the Garden and the refs made a bad call.” After presenter Julia Roberts announced “Green Book” as Best Picture, AP reporter Andrew Dalton was one of several journalists who noticed Lee wave his arms in anger before storming out of the theater. However, before he could leave, he was stopped at the doors and was forced to return to his seat once the speeches had stopped. Jordan Peele, the Oscar-winning writer-director behind last year’s “Get Out,” reportedly didn’t clap either, nor did other attendees nearby. The backlash appears to be in response to controversy surrounding the film, which had been criticized for perpetuating what some saw as a “white savior” narrative approach to examining race relations. The film topped “BlacKkKlansman,” “Roma” and other critical favorites to win the night’s top prize. “Green Book” was also embroiled in controversy involving the family members of the late Don Shirley, whom the film was based on. Previously, Shirley’s nephew, Edwin Shirley III, and brother, Maurice Shirley openly criticized the film in an interview with Shadow And Act, calling its portrayal of Dr. Don Shirley a “Symphony of Lies” – a statement that film star Viggo Mortensen called “unjustified” and “unfair.” Soon after, screenwriter Nick Vallelonga was implicated in yet another controversy when anti-Muslim tweets resurfaced, showing that Vallelonga had previously upheld a false conservative rumor that American Muslims could be seen cheering after 9/11. Vallelonga later apologized for the tweets writing in a statement, “I spent my life trying to bring this story of overcoming differences and finding common ground to the screen and I am incredibly sorry to everyone associated with ‘Green Book.’ I especially deeply apologize to the incredibly brilliant and kind Mahershala Ali and all member of the Muslim faith for the hurt I have caused. I am also sorry to my late father who changed so much from Dr. Shirley’s friendship and I promise this lesson is not lost on me. “Green Book” is a story about love, acceptance and overcoming barriers, and I will do better.” Finally, director Peter Farrelly was embroiled in his own controversy after reports surfaced about how he would regularly flash his penis two decades ago on the sets of films like “There’s Something About Mary.” “True. I was an idiot,” he said in an apology. “I did this decades ago and I thought I was being funny and the truth is I’m embarrassed and it makes me cringe now. I’m deeply sorry.”<doc-sep>LOS ANGELES - Spike Lee, the famed director whose “BlacKkKlansman,” was up for the best picture award at the Oscars on Sunday night, appeared to try to storm out of the Dolby Theatre after it was announced that “Green Book" won the award. Lee, a lifelong New York Knicks basketball fan, compared the "Green Book" win to a referee making "the wrong call." LIST OF WINNERS In a stunning move shortly after "Green Book" was announced the winner, the director walked toward the back of the auditorium, according to a reporter for Deadline. He eventually got back to his seat and got into what appeared to be an intense conversation with the writer Jordan Peele. The report said that Lee turned his back to the stage during the speech. "GREEN BOOK" WINS BEST PICTURE Peele, who was sitting behind Lee, also declined to applaud the winner, as did others in the room. “I’m snakebitten," Lee said while backstage. "I mean, every time somebody is driving somebody, I lose. But, they changed the seating arrangement. But, in ’89 I didn’t get nominated, so this one we did." 'GREEN BOOK' SCREENWRITER DELETES TWITTER AFTER OLD TWEETS ABOUT MUSLIMS SPARK BACKLASH Lee's "Do the Right Thing" lost to "Driving Miss Daisy" in 1990. He told New York Magazine years later that "when Driving Miss Motherf—-ing Daisy won Best Picture, that hurt. [But] no one’s talking about "Driving Miss Daisy" now." Lee said he had six glasses of champagne and attempted to make light of his reaction. "Wait a minute, what reaction did you see? What did I do? No, I thought it was courtside at the Garden and the ref made a bad call. Courtside! The world’s most famous arena, Madison Square Garden. Knicks coming back next year." GET THE FOX NEWS APP “Green Book” stars Mahershala Ali as an African-American concert pianist in the 1960s and Viggo Mortensen as his driver. It won three Oscars on Sunday, including best supporting actor for Ali and best original screenplay. 'GREEN BOOK' SCREENWRITER DELETES TWITTER AFTER OLD TWEETS ABOUT MUSLIMS SPARK BACKLASH Hailed as a tribute to racial tolerance by its makers and stars, “Green Book” was also widely criticized by many as an outdated, sentimentalized movie full of racial stereotypes. Lee won earlier for best-adapted screenplay for his white supremacist drama "BlacKkKlansman." The crowd rose in a standing ovation, Lee leapt into the arms of presenter Samuel L. Jackson and even the backstage press room burst into applause. Lee, whose film including footage of President Trump following the violent white supremacist protests in Charlottesville, Va., urged mobilization for the upcoming election. "Let's be on the right side of history. Make the moral choice between love and hate," said Lee, who was given an honorary Oscar in 2015. "Let's do the right thing! You knew I had to get that in there." Fox News' Julius Young and the Associated Press contributed.<doc-sep>Veteran Hollywood director Spike Lee won his first competitive Oscar on Sunday night for best adapted screenplay with his explosive docudrama "BlacKkKlansman," but his excitement turned sour after the best picture winner was revealed. During backstage interviews, Lee said surprise winner "Green Book" — based on the story of black pianist and composer Don Shirley and his white driver in the 1960s Jim Crow era — was a "bad call." In 1990, Lee's dramedy "Do the Right Thing" lost in its best writing category at the Academy Awards, the same year that "Driving Miss Daisy" — about the relationship between a black chauffeur and his white wealthy employer — took home a statue in a separate writing category. "I'm snakebit. I mean, every time somebody is driving somebody, I lose," Lee, 61, said to laughter in between sips of champagne. "But they changed the seating arrangement!" When asked specifically about "Green Book" winning best picture over "BlacKkKlansman," Lee joked: "Let me take another sip ... Next question! ... What reaction did you see? What did I do?" Reporters at the Dolby Theatre in Hollywood had earlier tweeted that Lee was "visibly angry" when "Green Book" won, and was "waving his arms in disgust and appearing to try to storm out" of the venue. Spike Lee was visibly angry when "Green Book" was announced as the winner of best picture at the Oscars, waving his arms in disgust and appearing to try to storm out of the Dolby Theatre before he was stopped at the doors. He returned to his seat when the speeches were over. — Andrew Dalton (@andyjamesdalton) February 25, 2019 Lee said backstage that he couldn't help himself. "No, I thought it was courtside at the Garden, and the ref made a bad call," said the die-hard New York Knicks fan. According to reports, other attendees didn't clap when "Green Book" won best picture, beating out the favorite "Roma," as well as other contenders, "Black Panther," "Bohemian Rhapsody," "The Favourite," "A Star Is Born" and "Vice." "Green Book," which also earned best supporting actor for Mahershala Ali (who plays Shirley) and best original screenplay, has been slammed by some viewers and critics as a "white savior" film, written and directed by white people and that uses racial clichés. Green Book? More like the White Pages pic.twitter.com/DjO2dmVnqH — Ira (@ira) February 25, 2019 During awards season, its screenwriter, Nick Vallelonga, the son of the real-life driver, Tony Lip, was under fire for a 2015 tweet about Muslims cheering during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks that had already been debunked. In an unrelated controversy, the movie's director, Peter Farrelly, said he was "deeply sorry" after a 1998 Newsweek article resurfaced in which he admitted to exposing himself on the set of "There's Something About Mary." Lee's "BlacKkKlansman" also tackles race, and tells the true story of black Colorado detective Ron Stallworth, who infiltrates the Ku Klux Klan in the early 1970s. Lee used his screenplay win on Sunday, which he shared with fellow writers Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz and Kevin Willmott, to call attention to the continued struggle of black Americans and the legacy of racism and slavery. "The 2020 presidential election is around the corner," he said during his acceptance speech. "Let's all mobilize. Let's all be on the right side of history. Make the moral choice between love versus hate. Let's do the right thing! You know I had to get that in there." Trump defended himself in a tweet Monday and claimed Lee's speech was a "racist hit on your President, who has done more for African Americans (Criminal Justice Reform, Lowest Unemployment numbers in History, Tax Cuts,etc.) than almost any other Pres!"<doc-sep>UPDATED with details from backstage: While he didn’t take the stage like Kanye West did years ago on the MTV Video Music Awards when Taylor Swift won an award that he felt should have gone to Beyoncé, BlacKkKlansman director Spike Lee did the next best thing when the Best Picture Oscar was won by Green Book. Our Pete Hammond reported from the Dolby Theatre that Lee clearly was furious, got up and walked toward the back of the auditorium in a huff. He then turned back and appeared to get into an intense conversation with Jordan Peele, who was behind him. Lee paced the aisle and stormed to the back of the auditorium. When he came back, he turned his back to the stage during the speech. In a recent appearance he made on CBS Sunday Morning to promote his Best Picture candidate, Lee recalled the time that Do the Right Thing didn’t get a Best Picture nomination for 1989, the year that Driving Miss Daisy won. At that time, he said he wasn’t commenting on Green Book but might have something to say if that film won. Don’t be surprised if microphones follow him everywhere. Awkward moment for Universal, which released Green Book, and whose Focus Features released BlacKkKlansman. Related Story Oscars: ‘Green Book’ Wins Best Picture – Complete Winners List Lee finally won the first Oscar of his long career, sharing Best Adapted Screenplay with Charlie Wachtel, David Rabinowitz and Kevin Willmot. He got skunked in the Best Director category when Alfonso Cuarón won, but didn’t get out of his chair for that one. It is unlikely that Lee’s classless outburst was simply sour grapes for not winning. This was about the undercurrent that seemed to follow Green Book through much of the race. It did seem hypocritical of Lee, whose Oscar speech emphasized choosing love over hate, when speaking about President Trump and the 2020 presidential elections. Asked backstage at the Dolby Theatre if his Adapted Screenplay win makes up for Do the Right Thing loss at the 1990 Oscars and the Academy overlooking it for a Best Picture nomination, Lee quipped in reference to that year’s Driving Miss Daisy Best Picture win and this year’s Green Book Oscar in the top category: “I’m snake bit. Every time somebody is driving somebody, I lose – but they changed the seating arrangement!”<doc-sep>
Click to email this to a friend (Opens in new window) Spike Lee threw a fit when “Green Book” won the Oscar for best picture, according to witnesses at the awards, and even tried to storm out. Hollywood blog Deadline reported that at the awards, Lee — who’d earlier won a best adapted screenplay Oscar for “BlacKkKlansman” but lost in the best director and best picture categories — was, “clearly furious, got up and walked toward the back of the auditorium in a huff. He then turned back and appeared to get into an intense conversation with Jordan Peele, who was behind him. Lee paced the aisle and stormed to the back of the auditorium. When he came back, he turned his back to the stage during the speech.” An AP reporter further tweeted of the scene, “Spike Lee was visibly angry when ‘Green Book’ was announced as the winner of best picture at the Oscars, waving his arms in disgust and appearing to try to storm out of the Dolby Theatre before he was stopped at the doors. He returned to his seat when the speeches were over.” Lee also apparently then turned his back during the filmmakers’ acceptance speeches. Deadline even compared it to the infamous time Kanye West jumped onstage when Taylor Swift won at the MTV VMAs. In a recent CBS interview, Lee recalled when his 1989 classic, “Do The Right Thing” missed out on a best pic nomination and “Driving Miss Daisy” won the award instead. Lee wore jewelry from “Do the Right Thing” to the Oscars show — rings that said “Love” and “Hate.” A reporter for the Hollywood Reporter on the scene tweeted that: “Spike Lee was asked about his reaction to GREEN BOOK’s win. First he said ‘no comment!’ and then he said ‘The ref made a bad call. '” Lee arrived backstage sipping champagne and, according to another THR reporter, said of his best picture loss, “I thought I was courtside at the Garden and the ref made a bad call.” He added, apparently referring to “Driving Miss Daisy,” “Every time someone is driving somebody I lose.”