Brett Ratner Booted from Oscars for Bad Behavior

Let the record show: you can't be a crass, loudmouthed idiot and still produce the Oscars.

Brett Ratner, who directed films such as "Rush Hour" and most recently "Tower Heist," was set to produce this year's Academy Awards ceremony in a decision that confused many in the industry.

But we'll never know if Ratner's Oscars were going to include explosions and scantily clad women, as he has officially been booted from the position.

Okay, so officially he "resigned," but we all know what's going on here. Ratner has been making headlines lately after doing some press for "Tower Heist" and making dumb statement after dumb statement. First he told a story about how he used to "bang" actress Olivia Munn and then "forgot" about it... a story that Munn was understandably offended by (especially considering that she maintains it isn't true).

But Ratner's big blunder was just a couple of days ago, when during a screening for "Tower Heist" he noted that "rehearsal is for fags."

No way are you coming back from that one. Even though Ratner made a public apology, the Academy acted swiftly and Ratner was forced to step down as producers of the upcoming Academy Awards telecast.

And before the "what about free speech?" people start piling on here, let me remind you of this: Ratner isn't going to jail or anything. Free speech doesn't protect you from being fired for being an offensive idiot.

Here's Ratner's full statement:

Dear Colleagues,

Over the last few days, I’ve gotten a well-deserved earful from many of the people I admire most in this industry expressing their outrage and disappointment over the hurtful and stupid things I said in a number of recent media appearances. To them, and to everyone I’ve hurt and offended, I’d like to apologize publicly and unreservedly.

As difficult as the last few days have been for me, they cannot compare to the experience of any young man or woman who has been the target of offensive slurs or derogatory comments. And they pale in comparison to what any gay, lesbian, or transgender individual must deal with as they confront the many inequalities that continue to plague our world.

So many artists and craftspeople in our business are members of the LGBT community, and it pains me deeply that I may have hurt them. I should have known this all along, but at least I know it now: words do matter. Having love in your heart doesn’t count for much if what comes out of your mouth is ugly and bigoted.

With this in mind, and to all those who understandably feel that apologies are not enough, please know that I will be taking real action over the coming weeks and months in an effort to do everything I can both professionally and personally to help stamp out the kind of thoughtless bigotry I’ve so foolishly perpetuated.

As a first step, I called Tom Sherak this morning and resigned as a producer of the 84th Academy Awards telecast. Being asked to help put on the Oscar show was the proudest moment of my career. But as painful as this may be for me, it would be worse if my association with the show were to be a distraction from the Academy and the high ideals it represents.

I am grateful to GLAAD for engaging me in a dialogue about what we can do together to increase awareness of the important and troubling issues this episode has raised and I look forward to working with them. I am incredibly lucky to have a career in this business that I love with all of my heart and to be able to work alongside so many of my heroes. I deeply regret my actions and I am determined to learn from this experience.

Sincerely,
Brett Ratner