Hong Kong film A Light Never Goes Out disqualified from 2024 Oscars due to conflict of interest
- Academy scraps A Light Never Goes Out’s entry for best international feature film after nominating committee allowed one of its stars to vote for it
- ‘Voting for the film was my mistake. I am very, very sorry,’ veteran actor Simon Yam says
The film Hong Kong had put forward for best international feature for this year’s Oscar race has been pulled from contention because one of the movie’s actors voted for it in the local selection process.
Given that A Light Never Goes Out received far more votes than the runner-up from the selection committee, Hong Kong would not enter any other film in the competition, the Federation of Motion Film Producers of Hong Kong said.
“Unfortunately, we have been notified by the Academy [of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences] that A Light Never Goes Out cannot represent Hong Kong at the awards,” it said in a notice sent to the film’s crew on Monday.
The vote was cast by veteran actor Simon Yam Tat-wah, who played a skilled neon sign craftsman in the film. He apologised for his mistake on Tuesday.
“To all the crew and colleagues who contributed to the film A Light Never Goes Out, I am sorry. Voting for the film was my mistake. I am very, very sorry,” Yam said.
“I’d also like to apologise to the Federation of Motion Film Producers of Hong Kong and to all who love films,” he added.