20 February 2023 , 17:15
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Whoopi Goldberg has taken aim at the Oscars for failing to nominate any women for a Best Director award.
The star-studded ceremony will take place at Hollywood's Dolby Theatre next month, but it's only male directors in with a chance of winning the top award.
Appearing on Monday's episode of The View, 67-year-old Whoopi slammed the Academy Awards as she addressed the controversial nominations.
With a forced smile on her face, she said: "There were several movies not nominated who were directed by women of all colours."
"I say that with a smile on my face, I'm not upset," she added sarcastically.
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The panellists were joined by actress Elizabeth Banks, who has recently directed thriller Cocaine Bear.
Whoopi Goldberg isn't happy with the Oscars (ABC)Speaking about the Oscars nominations Elizabeth said: "The statistics are not great. All I can do is lead by example, that's all I'm trying to do."
She also opened up about the inspiration behind her latest film, which tells the story of a killer bear on a horrifying coke-fuelled rampage in the woods.
"I was trying to tame the chaos I was feeling in my own life," the 49-year-old added.
The movie is actually based on the real life story of a 175-pound (79 kg) American black bear that ingested a duffel bag full of cocaine in December 1985.
Elizabeth Banks opened up about her new film (ABC)The coke had been dropped out of an airplane by Andrew C. Thornton II, a former narcotics officer and convicted drug smuggler.
After chucking the bag filled with $14million (£12million) worth of product out of the plane, Thornton tried to escape out the same way.
According to the Georgia Bureau of Investigations, he "hit his head on the tail of the aircraft" and failed to open his parachute.
His body was discovered by authorities in a driveway in Knoxville, Tennessee in September 1985 along with two guns, several knives and also $4,500 in cash.
Three months later, a dead bear was found south of the state line between Tennessee and Georgia in the Chattahoochee National Forest. alongside 40 opened plastic containers of coke.
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The curious bear ripped his way into the bag and managed to eat a huge amount of the drug before suffering a fatal overdose.
The chief medical examiner at the Georgia State Crime Lab said: "Its stomach was literally packed to the brim with cocaine. There isn’t a mammal on the planet that could survive that
"Cerebral haemorrhaging, respiratory failure, hyperthermia, renal failure, heart failure, stroke. You name it, that bear had it."