Everyone Wins or Do They?

No, this isn’t a post about the ongoing turmoil in Washington, D.C. as I try to shy away from politics. Nor is this a blog about the still-talked about Super Bowl Halftime Show. Instead, I’m tackling the upcoming Academy Awards ceremony and one of the most insane things I heard this week about the event.

I really hope this doesn’t come off as a bitter sounding blog as it is truly not my intent. However, I am perplexed that 25 nominees will be receiving ‘Everyone Wins’ gift bags. The men and women in the categories; Best Actor, Best Actress, Best Supporting Actor, Best Supporting Actress and Best Director will get tens of thousands of dollars in goods and services.

The marketing company Distinctive Assets has been putting together these nominee gift bags for almost 20 years according to Good Morning America. You can see all the details from their report here. I’ve read conflicting numbers on the value of each bag, but the low-end is $78,190. That’s for ONE bag. Multiply this by 25 nominees and you’re looking at $1,954,750.

I am not someone who thinks rich people are evil and don’t deserve to be rewarded for their work. However, I feel like that nearly two million dollars could be better used to help the many causes so many of Hollywood’s top names advocate for. Heck, even if you cut the value of the contents in half, that’s nearly a million dollars going to the nominee and a million bucks going to a good cause. Instead of Tom Hanks or Scarlett Johannson (and the rest) receiving luxury eyelashes, a gold-plate vape pen or bulletproof doors (among dozens of other items); why not use that money to pay off the lunch debt of students in need or support a homeless shelter or give veterans the mental health support they need when returning home?

And to be honest, I don’t know how many of the nominees accept the bags or donate the items to a worthy cause. Also, I’m not criticizing the company for giving gifts. It gets their name and brand out there too. But because so many in Hollywood use their power and influence for other causes, I wish someone would lead the charge on making a change with this tradition too.