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Rev. Sirico on ‘Spotlight’ and Hollywood Hypocrisy
Rev. Sirico on ‘Spotlight’ and Hollywood Hypocrisy
Jul 18, 2025 10:13 AM

The film “Spotlight” won 2016 best picture and original screenplay Oscars but Acton Institute co-founder and President Rev. Robert A. Sirico “eviscerated the Academy for embracing ‘Spotlight’ while it celebrated a child molester in its own ranks,” according to the Hollywood gossip site TMZ. The interview was picked up by which reported that “while Sirico agreed the film ‘underscores the great shame’ of the chapter in the Church’s history, he hammered the industry for standing by confessed child sex abuser Polanski.” Brietbart added this transcript of the TMZ video:

“What is lamentable to me, particularly in the kind of celebration over this … is that it [Spotlight] covers a scandal that took place in the very year that the Academy … itself awarded an award to Roman Polanski, who is a child molester,” said the priest mentator. He added: “There is just this contradiction … the church needs to, and I think has done many things to repent, of the heinous crime of child abuse. I wonder if the rest of our society, particularly Hollywood and the school system, and many other secular institutions would follow along.”

Here’s the official synopsis of “Spotlight” from the Oscars site:

In 2001, the journalists of The Boston Globe’s Spotlight team begin investigating Father John Geoghan, who is accused of molesting more than 80 boys. As they dig deeper and acknowledge their paper’s own failings, the team uncovers a conspiracy of lawyers and government officials who helped the Boston Archdiocese hide the pedophilia of many priests and deny justice to the victims.

Read “Priest Hits Hypocritical Hollywood for Supporting Child Rapist Roman Polanski and Celebrating ‘Spotlight’” by Kipp Jones on .

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