Kevin Hart Cancels Oscar Gig

One day after it was announced that Kevin Hart would be hosting the Oscars, now he isn’t. Homophobic tweets from Kevin’s past have again resurfaced. At first, Kevin chose not to apologize for his past jokes, but instead sadi that he has changed since then. He later Instagrammed that The Academy had asked him to apologize but he still chose not to do so.

Yet, he did still apologize later on Twitter and officially stepped down from this year’s hosting gig:

I have made the choice to step down from hosting this year's Oscar's….this is because I do not want to be a distraction on a night that should be celebrated by so many amazing talented artists. I sincerely apologize to the LGBTQ community for my insensitive words from my past.

— Kevin Hart (@KevinHart4real) December 7, 2018

I'm sorry that I hurt people.. I am evolving and want to continue to do so. My goal is to bring people together not tear us apart. Much love & appreciation to the Academy. I hope we can meet again.

— Kevin Hart (@KevinHart4real) December 7, 2018

Do I think he has, in fact, changed his views on things? Absolutely. Does this make it okay that he’s said crappy things in the past? I’m not sure about that. His past homophobic jokes are just a small part of what makes living as a member of the LGBTQ community challenging. We’re continuting to move forward and it is getting better most of the time. I don’t know if he should have been asked to leave the gig but it seems that he chose to step back before The Academy had to make that decision. I’m just hoping that this will serve as a reminder of how hurtful words can be and encourage others to be more mindful when they speak and post and encourage spreading kindness and love. <3 Ballzer