Oscars 2019: Angry Fan Edits Best Picture Winner 'Green Book' Wikipedia Page

Oscars 2019 Best Picture winner Green Book may have taken home the gold statue at the Academy [...]

By Allison Schonter

Oscars 2019 Best Picture winner Green Book may have taken home the gold statue at the Academy Awards, but its Wikipedia page isn't winning any accolades.

Following the Sunday night ceremony and the big win for the Peter Farrelly-directed film, fans flocked to the film's Wikipedia page to make a few edits and take out their frustration about the movie, which has been accused of harboring a "White Savior Complex."

Within minutes of winning Best Picture, its Wikipedia was amended to read "Lying White Guilt Trash." It was later changed to "Green Book aka White Savoir" before being corrected to its true title.

In the hours since winning Best Picture, the page has been edited dozens of times, with the words "sexual harasser" being added before Farrelly's name, referencing allegations that he flashed his genitals as a joke, and "serial liar and Islamophobe" being added before writer and producer Nick Vallelonga's name, referencing a 2015 tweet about 9/11 in which Vallelonga said he'd seen "Muslims in Jersey City cheering when towers went down."

The Wikipedia page has also seen edits to the "See Also" section. Among references to "Jim Crow laws" and "List of black films of the 2010s," one fan also added "White savior narrative in film, a cinematic trope that has been connected to Green Book."

The anger has even been taken out on the Oscar's Wikipedia page, with the Best Picture winner being listed as "Wack A– Oscar Bait."

The film, which premiered nationwide in November of 2018, is inspired by the real-life story of the journey into the Deep South by African-American classical and jazz pianist Don Shirley and Italian-American bouncer Tony Vallelonga, who served as Shirley's driver and bodyguard.

Since its release, the film has been widely criticized for its portrayal of race relations, with Esquire critic Gabrielle Brune dubbing the film a "white savior road trip movie that uses fried chicken as its leitmotif."

Doc Shirley's family even had a negative opinion of Green Book, with the late musician's brother, Maurice Shirley, slamming the film for its portrayal of Doc Shirley and Vallelonga's relationship, stating in a letter to Black Enterprise that "my brother never considered Tony to be his "friend"; he was an employee, his chauffeur. This is why context and nuance are so important."

The film's controversy was not forgotten within the walls of Dolby Theater, either. After Green Book's win, BlacKkKlansman director Spike Lee reportedly got up and walked to the back of the auditorium before returning to his seat and turning his back to the stage.

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