The two PricewaterhouseCoopers accountants responsible for the epic best picture flub at Sunday night’s Oscars will not be invited back by the Academy, the organization’s president Cheryl Boone Issacs told the Associated Press on Wednesday. A spokesperson for the firm confirmed that the two accountants will not participate in future shows.
Brian Cullinan and Martha Ruiz were the two members of the firm tasked with safeguarding the envelopes with the winners names on them. However, a mix-up by Cullinan resulted in presenters Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway being given the best actress envelope instead of the one announcing that “Moonlight” had won best picture. Dunaway mistakenly announced that “La La Land” had won the top prize.
Cullinan has drawn media attention and scrutiny because he was tweeting from backstage minutes before handing Beatty the wrong envelope. A PwC spokesperson said both Cullinan and Ruiz are still partners in the firm.
Boone Issacs and the non-profit organization have been slow to respond to the fallout, waiting a full day to issue a public apology. They waited more than 48 hours to apologize for another mess-up, one that saw the group include a picture of a still-living producer in its in memoriam segment.
Boone Issacs told the AP that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the full name of the group behind the Oscars, is reviewing its ties to PwC.
Spokespeople for PwC and the Academy did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
In an earlier interview with the New Yorker, Boone Issacs said that the thought that went through her mind when the best picture mistake was made was “horror.”
“I looked out and I saw a member of Pricewaterhouse coming on the stage, and I was, like, Oh, no, what—what’s happening?” said Boone Issacs. “What what WHAT? What could possibly . . . ? And then I just thought, Oh, my God, how does this happen? How. Does. This. Happen.”
