Hollywood
Not De Niro, not Nicholson: the actor who rejected an Oscar and shamed Hollywood on live TV
It is just over 50 years since the Native American Sacheen Littlefeather publicly declined a Best Actor award on behalf of a Hollywood great.

In 1955, Marlon Brando took to the stage to accept his first Oscar. The young star won the coveted Best Actor award for his role in On the Waterfront, an iconic movie in which he played the unforgettable character Terry Malloy.
Then just 30 years old, Brando forgot the speech he had prepared and had to improvise.
After receiving the golden statuette from Bette Davis, Brando went on to have a long, illustrious big-screen career, earning another Oscar just under two decades on.
However, Brando’s reaction to being named Best Actor in 1973, for his performance as mob boss Vito Corleone in The Godfather, was entirely different.
Why did Brando reject the Best Actor Oscar in 1973?
Brando made a bold political statement that embarrassed Hollywood, having asked a Native American actor to attend the 45th Academy Awards in his place, in protest at the industry’s treatment of Indigenous people in the U.S.
In a speech given by Brando’s Native American representative, Sacheen Littlefeather, he declined the Best Actor honor.
“I’m Apache and I’m president of the National Native American Affirmative Image Committee,” Littlefeather told the audience at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles.
“I’m representing Marlon Brando this evening, and he has asked me to tell you - in a very long speech which I cannot share with you presently, because of time, but I will be glad to share with the press afterwards - that he very regretfully cannot accept this very generous award.
“And the reasons for this being are the treatment of American Indians by the film industry and on television in movie reruns, and also with recent happenings at Wounded Knee.”
At the time of the gala, Native American activists were in the middle of a 71-day occupation of the South Dakota town of Wounded Knee, amid protests over corruption among tribal leadership and the U.S. government’s failure to honor treaties with Native people.
Littlefeather jeered, abused, threatened and blacklisted
Although some in the Oscars audience applauded Littlefeather’s speech, she also received loud boos. “I beg at this time that I have not intruded upon this evening and that […] in the future, our hearts and our understandings will meet with love and generosity,” she said.
Littlefeather, who died aged 75 in October 2022, was subjected to racist gestures and even received death threats after delivering Brando’s statement. And she was blacklisted, never working in Hollywood again.
In August 2022, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences apologized to Littlefeather for the “unwarranted and unjustified” abuse she endured.
Article originally written in Spanish, before being translated with the assistance of AI, and edited and expanded by William Allen.
Get your game on! Whether you’re into NFL touchdowns, NBA buzzer-beaters, world-class soccer goals, or MLB home runs, our app has it all. Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more – plus, stay updated on the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.