Academy rescinds Oscar nomination for ‘Benghazi’ sound mixer

Citing a violation of campaign regulations, the motion picture academy announced Saturday that it has rescinded the Oscar nomination for sound mixer Greg P. Russell from “13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi.”

“The decision was prompted by the discovery that Russell had called his fellow members of the sound branch during the nominations phase to make them aware of his work on the film, in direct violation of a campaign regulation that prohibits telephone lobbying,” the academy said in a statement.

The remaining sound mixers from “Benghazi” — Gary Summers, Jeffrey J. Haboush and Mac Ruth — will remain as nominees.

“The board of governors’ decision to rescind Mr. Russell’s nomination was made after careful consideration,” academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs said in a statement. “The academy takes very seriously the Oscars voting process and anything — no matter how well-intentioned — that may undermine the integrity of that process.”

The move was made after a recommendation by the sound branch’s executive committee. The academy’s board of governors voted to pull Russell’s nomination on Thursday, with the academy announcing the decision two days later.

Russell isn’t an Oscar newcomer. The veteran sound mixer has 17 Oscar nominations, beginning with 1989’s “Black Rain” and including such films as “Con Air,” “Transformers” and “Pearl Harbor.” He has never won an Academy Award.

Released in January 2016, the war film “13 Hours: The Secret Soldiers of Benghazi” followed a security team defending the American diplomatic compound in Benghazi, Libya, after terrorist attacks on Sept. 11, 2012. Michael Bay directed the movie.

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