Sam Smith made a rather large claim at the 88th Annual Academy Awards Sunday night and the internet has been quick to remind him how wrong he was.
The singer won Best Original Song for “Writings on the Wall,” the theme for the latest Bond film, Spectre. Following a universally acknowledged terrible performance (with the singer himself saying it was the worst moment of his life), Smith’s acceptance speech is being ridiculed for its inaccuracy.
“I read an article a few months ago by Sir Ian McKellen and he said that no openly gay man had ever won an Oscar,” the singer said, his accolade in hand. “If this is the case, even if this isn’t the case, I want to dedicate this [Oscar] to the LGBT community all around the world. I stand here tonight as a proud gay man and I hope we can all stand together as equals one day. Thank you so much.”
The dedication was certainly welcome, but Smith’s rather large oversight has continued to gain momentum on social media, with Smith’s followup comments about thinking he was actually the second openly gay man to win an Oscar just adding fuel to the fire.
As Buzzfeed points out, McKellen was speaking of the Best Actor category, as several openly gay men have indeed won an Oscar, including Elton John, Stephen Sondheim, and Dustin Lance Black, not to mention others within the LGBTQ+ community.
It’s doubtful Smith will be forgetting his Oscar night anytime soon, even if he wanted to.
Celebrities and fans alike have begun roasting him, but the most scathing takedown came from fellow out-of-the-closet winner Dustin Lance Black, who won for his Milk screenplay in 2009. As you may remember, Black had a particularly moving acceptance speech:
Hey @SamSmithWorld, if you have no idea who I am, it may be time to stop texting my fiancé. Here's a start: https://t.co/8hGTRtIaMK
— Dustin Lance Black (@DLanceBlack) February 29, 2016
THE POINT: knowing our LGBTQ history is important. We stand on the shoulders of countless brave men and women who paved the way for us.
— Dustin Lance Black (@DLanceBlack) February 29, 2016
Black’s insinuations there — potentially as far as flirting with his fiancé Tom Daley — are deep.
Things got even worse for Smith after accepting his award. Backstage in the press room a reporter told the singer he wasn’t the first openly gay person to win an Oscar — and cited Lyricist Howard Ashman’s 1989 and 1991 Oscar wins as an example. Smith reportedly replied, “I should know him. We should date.”
The only problem? Ashman died due to AIDS complications in 1991.
We’ve provided some of the other reactions from around the internet below.
I'd said no openly gay actor had received #Oscars-that doesn’t detract from @samsmithworld achievement. Congratulations to him & all others!
— Ian McKellen (@IanMcKellen) February 29, 2016
Congrats to Sam Smith for being the first openly gay man to inaccurately claim he is the first openly gay man to win at the #Oscars
— Clay Aiken (@clayaiken) February 29, 2016
BREAKING: Sam Smith the first openly gay person to get a latte at a North Hollywood Starbucks, per his rep
— Eric Alt (@Eric_Alt) February 29, 2016
Sam Smith referred to himself as the first 'openly gay' man to win an Oscar…what, is Elton John still in the closet then? ?
— Toby Fletcher (@Toby_Fletcher) February 29, 2016
#SamSmith claims to be the first openly gay man to wear skinny jeans.
— Herschel (@herschel180) February 29, 2016
This just in; Sam Smith claims to be first openly gay man on the Moon. pic.twitter.com/intkjfwUzh
— Sam Syron (@SamSyron) February 29, 2016
As the first openly gay man to write a tweet I'd like to dedicate it to the LGBT community
— Willary Harte (@wjharte) February 29, 2016