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Announcing his decision, the director, who won the 2012 best
foreign language film award for "A Separation" and is nominated
again this year, compared the Trump administration to Iranian
hardliners as both use the fear of outsiders "to justify
extremist and fanatic behavior by narrow-minded individuals".
"Hardliners, despite their nationalities, political arguments
and wars, regard and understand the world in very much the same
way," Farhadi said in a statement, published by the New York
Times and some Iranian media.
"In order to understand the world, they have no choice but to
regard it via an 'us and them' ... This is not just limited to
the United States; in my country hardliners are the same," he
said, announcing he would not attend the Oscars even if he were
given special permission to travel.
Taraneh Alidoosti, the female lead of Farhadi's "The Salesman",
which is nominated for this year's foreign language Oscar, has
already announced she would boycott the ceremony in protest at
Trump's "racist" travel ban.
Farhadi is unpopular with Iranian hardliners who criticized "A
Separation" as it illustrated gender inequality in Iran and the
desire by many Iranians to leave the country.
Sociologist Ebrahim Fayyaz was quoted in Iranian media calling
it "the worst Iranian film ever" as it was incompatible with
Islamic morality and the ideal of defying the West.
Trump imposed a temporary travel ban on citizens of Iran, Iraq,
Syria, Libya, Somalia, Sudan and Yemen as a first step in a
policy he says will keep terrorists from entering the United
States.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences called the ban
"extremely troubling" after noticing that Farhadi and his cast
and crew could be barred.
"The Academy celebrates achievement in the art of filmmaking,
which seeks to transcend borders and speak to audiences around
the world, regardless of national, ethnic or religious
differences," it said on Saturday.
(Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
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