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Activist actor Sean Penn raised eyebrows for skipping the 98th Academy Awards on Sunday, especially after he won the award for Best Supporting Actor in \u201cOne Battle After Another.\u201d It was later revealed that Penn was in Ukraine at the time.<\/span><\/p>\n Per <\/span>Page Six,<\/span><\/a> Penn was meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Kyiv on Monday, and while he was there, he was given a flat, Oscar-shaped statue made out of forged metal from a destroyed railcar.<\/span><\/p>\n Ukrainian Railways CEO Oleksandr Pertsovskyi shared a video of Penn receiving the \u201cIronOscar\u201d on X.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cYou\u2019re missing the Oscars,\u201d Pertsovskyi told Penn. \u201cPlus, you gave the last one to the president. So we made this one \u2026 You said the metals survived, so we put some words here that are very special to us. It\u2019s not golden, but it\u2019s very real, and it\u2019s from the bottom of our hearts. It\u2019s important to us.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Penn hugged Pertsovskyi and said, \u201cThese are all treasures, thank you.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Sean Penn opted for the trip to \ud83c\uddfa\ud83c\udde6 vs. Oscar ceremony at Dolby Theater where he was awarded his 3rd \ud83c\udfc6. We couldn\u2019t leave our great friend and loyal Ukrainian Raiwlays passenger without an award. So, I have presented Sean with our IronOscar on behalf of all of us! pic.twitter.com\/OLyzOY4h7L<\/a><\/p>\n \u2014 Oleksandr Pertsovskyi (@Pertsovskyi_O) March 17, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n The iron Oscar-shaped statue says on the back, \u201cThis steel once carried millions of people away from war. Then a Russian missile came. We did not melt it into a weapon. We forged it into gratitude \u2014 for you. For your talent. For your courage to stand with Ukraine.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n Academy Awards presenter Kieran Culkin joked during Sunday\u2019s broadcast about Penn not being there after announcing he had won.\u00a0 \u201cSean Penn couldn\u2019t be here this evening, or didn\u2019t want to, so I\u2019ll be accepting the award on his behalf,\u201d Culkin said from the stage.<\/span><\/p>\n In 2022, Penn <\/span>threatened<\/span><\/a> to \u201csmelt\u201d his Oscar if the Academy Awards planners said no to a virtual appearance by the Ukrainian president, plus encouraged other celebrities to boycott the ceremony.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Penn later gave his Oscars statue to Zelensky.<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cI feel terrible. This is for you. It\u2019s just a symbolic silly thing, but if I know this is here with you then I\u2019ll feel better and stronger for the fight,\u201d he <\/span>said<\/span><\/a> at the time. \u201cWhen you win, bring it back to Malibu. I\u2019ll feel much better knowing a piece of me is here.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n