Spike Lee was presented with an honorary Oscar late last year, recognizing his work as a director for films such as Malcolm X, Jungle Fever, and Do The Right Thing. Today, we all remember when Do the Right Thing was unfairly shut out of the Best Picture race, the infamous year of Driving Miss Daisy. (You didn’t really, Hollywood, did you? YES YOU DID!) How Kim Basinger took to the stage in protest on Oscar Night, and how critic Roger Ebert was among the loudest critics of the Oscars that year. We remember. It seems like a lifetime ago. We were screaming about it again in 2001 when Sissy Spacek and Russell Crowe were about to win Oscars in 2001, and then Halle Berry became the first (and only) black actress to win an Oscar for a leading role. In 88 years. Of Oscar history. One black actress. Can you really sit there with a straight face and tell me that no other performance has ever been worthy? No performance by a black actress has been better than Sandra Bullock in the Blind Side in 88 years of Oscar history?
Lee has penned a letter about the Oscars being white… again.
#OscarsSoWhite… Again.
I would like to thank President Cheryl Boone Isaacs and the Board of Governors of the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences for awarding me an honorary Oscar this past November. I am most appreciative. However, my wife, Mrs. Tonya Lewis Lee and I will not be attending the Oscar ceremony this coming February. We cannot support it and mean no disrespect to my friends, host Chris Rock and producer Reggie Hudlin, President Isaacs and the Academy. But how is it possible, for the 2nd consecutive year, all 20 contenders under the actor category are white? And let’s not even get into the other branches. 40 white actors in 2 years and no flava at all. We can’t act? WTF?
It’s no coincidence I’m writing this as we celebrate the 30th anniversary of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr’s birthday. Dr. King said, “There comes a time when one must take a position that is neither safe, nor politic, nor popular, but he must take it because conscience tells him it’s right.”
For too many years, when the Oscar nominations are revealed, my office phone rings off the hook with the media asking me my opinion about the lack of African-Americans and this year was no different. For once, (maybe) I would like the media to ask all the white nominees and the studio heads how they feel about another all white ballot. If someone has addressed this and I missed it, then I stand mistaken.
As I see it, the Academy Awards is not where the “real” battle is. It’s in the executive offices of the Hollywood studios and the TV and cable networks. This is where the gate keepers decide what gets made and what gets jettisoned to “turnaround” or scrap heap. This is what’s important. The Gate Keepers. Those with “the green light” vote. As the great actor Leslie Odom Jr. sings and dances in the game changing Broadway musical Hamilton, “I wanna be in the room where it happens.” People, the truth is, we ain’t in those rooms and until minorities are, the Oscar nominees will remain lily white.
As I said in my honorary Oscar acceptance speech, it’s easier for an African-American to be President of the United States than be President of a Hollywood studio. Also, the United States Census Bureau released a report stating white Americans will be a minority in America by the year 2044. Don’t you think it’s a wise business decision to have your product and workforce reflect the diversity of the greatest country on this God’s Earth? I ask, what’s the hold up? And please … don’t go to the well and say there are no qualified minority candidates for these green light gate keeping positions.
It’s amazing how far sports and music have moved ahead of Hollywood and television, but maybe we can learn from them too. Your honor, I present Exhibit A: the National Football League’s Rooney Rule. It’s named after the late Dan Rooney, owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers. Mr. Rooney was also chairman of the league’s diversity committee.
The Rooney Rule states NFL teams MUST interview minorities candidates for the positions of head coach and senior football executives before hires. Since being put in place before the 2006 season, African-American hires have increased. Facebook and Pinterest have their own version of the Rooney Rule to hire minorities. Why can’t Hollywood do the same? It’s worth the effort or it will be the same old hi-jinks. I do hope in my children’s lifetime things will change for the betterment of all Americans. A great diverse America.
Spike Lee
Filmmaker
Da Republic of Brooklyn, New York
MLK Day
January 18th, 2016
===
Lee also posted the letter on his Instagram page along with a photo of Dr. Martin Luther King:
#OscarsSoWhite… Again.
I Would Like To Thank President Cheryl Boone Isaacs And The Board Of Governors Of The Academy Of Motion Pictures Arts And Sciences For Awarding Me an Honorary Oscar This Past November. I Am Most Appreciative. However My Wife, Mrs. Tonya Lewis Lee And I Will Not Be Attending The Oscar Ceremony This Coming February. We Cannot Support It And Mean No Disrespect To My Friends, Host Chris Rock and Producer Reggie Hudlin, President Isaacs And The Academy. But, How Is It Possible For The 2nd Consecutive Year All 20 Contenders Under The Actor Category Are White? And Let’s Not Even Get Into The Other Branches. 40 White Actors In 2 Years And No Flava At All. We Can’t Act?! WTF!!
It’s No Coincidence I’m Writing This As We Celebrate The 30th Anniversary Of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr’s Birthday. Dr. King Said “There Comes A Time When One Must Take A Position That Is Neither Safe, Nor Politic, Nor Popular But He Must Take It Because Conscience Tells Him It’s Right”.
For Too Many Years When The Oscars Nominations Are Revealed, My Office Phone Rings Off The Hook With The Media Asking Me My Opinion About The Lack Of African-Americans And This Year Was No Different. For Once, (Maybe) I Would Like The Media To Ask All The White Nominees And Studio Heads How They Feel About Another All White Ballot. If Someone Has Addressed This And I Missed It Then I Stand Mistaken.
As I See It, The Academy Awards Is Not Where The “Real” Battle Is. It’s In The Executive Office Of The Hollywood Studios And TV And Cable Networks. This Is Where The Gate Keepers Decide What Gets Made And What Gets Jettisoned To “Turnaround” Or Scrap Heap. This Is What’s Important. The Gate Keepers. Those With “The Green Light” Vote. As The Great Actor Leslie Odom Jr. Sings And Dances In The Game Changing Broadway Musical HAMILTON, “I WANNA BE IN THE ROOM WHERE IT HAPPENS”. People, The Truth Is We Ain’t In Those Rooms And Until Minorities Are, The Oscar Nominees Will Remain Lilly White.
As I Said In My Honorary Oscar Acceptance Speech, It’s Easier For An African-American To Be President Of The United States Than Be President Of A Hollywood Studio. Also The United States Census Bureau Released A Report Stating White Americans Will Be A Minority In America By The Year 2044. Don’t You Think It’s A Wise Business Decision To Have Your Product And Workforce Reflect The Diversity Of The Greatest Country On This God’s Earth? I Ask, What’s The Hold Up? And Please… Don’t Go To The Well And Say There Are No Qualified Minority Candidates For These Green Light Gate Keeping Positions.
It’s Amazing How Far Sports And Music Have Moved Ahead Of Hollywood And Television, But Maybe We Can Learn From Them Too. Your Honor, I Present Exhibit A: The National Football League’s Rooney Rule. It’s Named After The Late Dan Rooney, Owner Of The Pittsburgh Steelers. Mr. Rooney Was Also Chairman Of The League’s Diversity Committee.
The Rooney Rule States NFL Teams MUST Interview Minority Candidates For The Positions Of Head Coach And Senior Football Executives Before Hires. Since Being Put In Place Before The 2006 Season, African-American Hires Have Increased. Facebook And Pinterest Have Their Own Version Of The Rooney Rule To Hire Minorities. Why Can’t Hollywood Do The Same? It’s Worth The Effort Or It Will Be The Same Old Hi-Jinks. I Do Hope In My Children’s Lifetime Things Will Change For The Betterment Of All Americans. A Great Diverse America.
Spike Lee
Filmmaker
Da Republic Of Brooklyn, New York
MLK Day
January 18th, 2016
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Yes, deserving Tessa was not in the conversation, but Idris Elba sure was. And so were Michael B. Jordan, and Compton and Beasts for Picture, especially thanks to the Guilds, who seem to rule the roost more than the critics in recent years.
Hahaha that”s right!
Boyhood and Social Network are definitely two of the best reviewed (English-language) films of the decade, but #1 is Tree of Life. Personally, I was underwhelmed, but it just missed the Sight & Sound 100 greatest of all time in 2012. I wonder whether it would have even been nominated if only 5 were allowed (it probably would have duked it out with The Help for the #5 spot, ironic to this discussion).
And look at the last decade too. Among the best reviewed films of the decade not even nominated were wall-e, Eternal Sunshine and Mulholland Dr. The latter is the highest ranked film at Sight & Sound in the past 35 years, since loser Apocalypse Now. Among the best reviewed nominated but to lose were There Will Be Blood (though at least that lost to the best reviewed Oscar winner of that decade, No Country for Old Men – but Blood is considered to be even greater by the critical masse), and Brokeback Mountain, which lost to the worst reviewed film to win Best Picture since I don’t know when. That was on account of Academy homophobia.
And that’s full circle back to Academy bigotry. Sure, several white people were also snubbed, but why is it that people of color received 0/40 acting nominations in the past two years? Don’t blame Hollywood completely. Idris Elba’s performance was top 3 most acclaimed and winningest among supporting this year, and Straight Outta Compton (not my fave) had Guild precursor love that on paper should have put it ahead of Brooklyn and Room (the latter in my top 5 – saying this because trying to keep personal preference out of the discussion). There’s just something wrong when all the cusp contenders of color lose out every year. Its not like they had nothing to choose from. If its a major contender, find time to see it, otherwise don’t vote. And don’t just vote with your heart, vote with your head too, and, as artists, judge what you think is indeed a work of art. Just because one has more fun watching Animal House than Citizen Kane doesn’t make the former a better film.
But the self-anointed Academy looks to itself to judge. Few I know of take their choices seriously. Why? Just look at their poor track record thru the years. I’d take the NY and LA film critics any day, among others.
Well said! I am sick of white supremacy.
they really did drop the ball
if they campaigned from the start Michael B, Coogler, Tessa could have been seriously in the conversation.
No one’s saying there has to be at least one black nominee in every category, but is it so much to ask for a single nominee who isn’t white…?
yeah but Tessa Thompson (while GREAT) was NEVER in the conversation. people are acting like we were expecting her and Creed to get more nominations and I guess the pundits are to blame for that one.
Let’s start with the work of black actresses in 2016. Has 1 black actress led a film? I’ll toss out Teyonah Parris/Chiraq, Leah Vaughn/The Perfect Guy and Zoe Saldana in Infinitely Polar Bear. Are any of these 3 superior to Blanchett, Brie, JLawrence, Charlotte or Saoirse? If they wanted to be, I suppose they needed that Nov./Dec. studio marketing push. But, Chiraq was released 12/4. The (white) critics didn’t rave about Parris? Of these 3, should the Academy now make a mandatory 6th slot so one of these very rare leading contender be put in? Or will it now have to be like the Best Picture where we must keep going until one of these 3 gets in? (I’m skipping Tangerine since I’m assuming that a Best Actor category.)
Best Supporting Actress – it’s hard enough for black actresses to find work and the only ones that I count who were employed last year were Ester Dean/Pitch Perfect 2, Angela Bassett/Jennifer Hudson/Chiraq, Jada P. Smith/Magic Mike XXL, Zoe Kravitz/MM:Fury Road and MJordan’s girlfriend in Creed, though I didn’t see it – ‘girlfriends’ in SOutta Compton. Where were the out and out raves for this class? Again – were any of these ‘better’ than Winslet, Vidanker, Mara, JJLeigh or McAdams? Should there have been a 6th slot where one of these roles was automatically placed or, again, the Best Picture way where the voting stops until one of the above is in place.
If those boycotting want faces in those acting slots, why don’t they just remake (calling Mr. Coogan) every movie that won Oscars for White actors? Remake Network & A Streetcar Named Desire for 3 black wins. Try remaking From Here To Eternity, The Silence of the Lambs, The Piano, West Side Story, Hud, Cabaret, One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest, Ben Hur, Terms of Endearment, Julia and Mrs. Miniver to get the 2 Oscars each that you demand.
Or – again calling Mr. Coogan – reboot past ‘robbed’/nominated performances so the character is updated and ready to win. (Viola Davis/Doubt, Denzel/Flight or The Hurricane 2, MJ-Baptiste/Secrets & Lies, James Earl James/The Great White Hope/THoward/Hustle & Flow, GSidibe/Precious 2….)
Damn…Aunt Viv just went off on the Smiths. Don’t know if the link is posting but it’s on Hollywood Reporter.
Well said. Please note that Ambassador Dan Rooney is still alive and well. http://www.ArtRooney.com
It’s a much larger issue within the industry. I didn’t care for the film, but very little of that had to do with the yellowface issue. The reality is that it is somehow still acceptable to studios and audiences. There are far more egregious examples, but the point still stands. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Examples_of_yellowface#Yellowface_worn_by_a_character_in_a_film
Can’t agree with you more. Well said Tim!
I’m sure if the Wachowski siblings could have they would have made Sturgess black, just like they made Hugo Weaving Asian, Halle Berry and Doona Bae white, Ben Whishaw and Hugo Weaving women and Hugh Grant…whatever he was in the future.
The really evil thing about this debate is that when people of color ARE nominated for Oscars, the current crowd smugly saying “aren’t the awards based on merit” will be the first to loudly condemn those nominations as “tokenism”.
You are extremely articulate.
Then why make the movie at all? My own feelings about the actual adaptation aside, you would never see a movie where Jim Sturgess dons blackface.
Thank you.
Or could that be it might have nothing to do with race? Is it possible?
“or rather that’s what pundits, critics and bloggers focus on the most.”
That is the critical point in my post because I’m laying it at the hands of those well known writers, who are mostly white. When I went to other sites, including Hitfix and Hollywood Reporter, the articles would only mention black people and nobody else. That’s what I’m annoyed with, the writers of articles. The Oscars ignore all people of color. It sucks. The nominations are heavily marginalized. What’s worse then are the articles marginalizing the snubs, so entire groups of people are not only being left out of the nominees lists but also the snubs. Never did I say I’m blaming black people or that I’m “putting the responsibility of white
supremacy on black hands.” That’s a very bold thing to say and one I would never say myself.
The boss is called a “studio head”, and only white people go down on them. That’s why they get the roles.
I would even prefer Asians on screen, as they are better looking. So, on top of talents, you’d have eye candy as well. Win-win.
I will boycott Spike Lee until he attacks the studio bosses with something more than an open letter. Do the right thing, man.
Pretty sure Elba got an AD nomination too. You’re right, and so is Spike, that the problem starts with the industry as a whole and not with the Academy, but there were a few choice snubs here that are, let’s say, suspicious (Compton hitting most guilds and getting shut out of Best Pic and the Idris Elba snub in particular) considering they seemed extremely likely to happen. So likely, in fact, that I might have bet money on it and felt very comfortable in that bet.
PS Obviously I NEVER expected them to go for Tangerine, but my inclusion of that film was to show yet another movie that had broad support from many groups that didn’t fit into the “all the best movies this year were white movies” argument that some people like to throw out there.
Didn’t know Assassin wasn’t eligible. Thanks
My point is that there were others who DID feel it was ”one of the best 10 films of the year.”
Thanks Diane for posting this excerpt as well. Some people speak out without actually READING before posting objections.
@Laila – it appears you didn’t take the time to actually read Spike’s ENTIRE letter… otherwise you would have noticed that you are in agreement with him. See excerpt below where he clearly states – The Academy Awards is not the real issue.
“As I see it, the Academy Awards is not where the “real” battle is. It’s in the executive offices of the Hollywood studios and the TV and cable networks. This is where the gate keepers decide what gets made and what gets jettisoned to “turnaround” or scrap heap. This is what’s important. The Gate Keepers. Those with “the green light” vote.”
Your response?
That is exactly what you are doing accusing Asians without looking into the reality.
What pisses me off about these discussions is that non-black PoC feel the need to attack black people for not “including” us as if the issue of white supremacy SHOULD BE at the hands and responsibility for black people. It’s not only racist but it’s anti-blackness that pervades through multiple cultures, and it shifts the blame away from white people.
Let black people have their own discussions and their own spaces before you start complaining about why there are no Hispanics or Asians nominated – especially considering those bringing THAT up are either white, racist, have never even spoken about the lack of non-black PoC or black people in films before black people started speaking up or all three.
I remember that white man who murdered 9 black people in a church, and in his manifesto he stated how Asians would make good “allies” with white people for white supremacy.
If a terrorist and murderer can recognise anti-blackness in Asian communities then there is a problem, we as Asian people need to address. You are an example of this form of racism where you blame black people for being their own voice. Create your own discussion but don’t fucking silence those who are struggling too.
Stop blaming black people for white supremacy. Let black people create their own discussions and their own spaces. Black people owe us Asians nothing.
Black people owe non-black people of colour nothing. I’m saying this as an Asian person. Black people have the right to be mad on the lack of diversity, and they have every right to be more specific to their race. Yes, Asians and Hispanics have a harder time but black people do too. Stop putting the responsibility of white supremacy on black hands. Black people aren’t the enemy here.
I’m not accusing Asians of anything. I am accusing you of trying to pit Asians against Blacks. This is exactly what white racists want. Make the minorities hate each other so that whites aren’t held accountable.
Again, your anger is misguided.
Good point..!
That rule is so arbitrary. Ryuichi Sakamoto won an Oscar with David Byrne and Cong Su for their score to ”The Last Emperor,” so three people have won before for the same movie. And god knows, there are multiple nominees on a song. ”Earned It” from ”50 Shades of Grey” has 4 writers. Why is it OK to have 4 writers on a song, but not 3 writers for a score, which is much longer? Idiotic!
Well, NBR and AFI also picked Unbroken. Should it have received a BP nom?
Take a look at this site http://criticstop10.com. A critics top 10 aggregator.
Look at where SOC is and where are the other BP contenders. Then look at numbers 3, 4 and 5. Where are they at the BP race?
I love both BoS & Creed.. Haven’t seen SOC yet..
“When a people are mired in oppression, they realize deliverance only when they have accumulated the power to enforce change. The powerful never lose opportunities– they remain available to them. The powerless, on the other hand, never experience opportunity– it is always arriving at a later time.”
“[Boycotting] has as its primary aim the securing of more and better jobs for the Negro people. It calls on the Negro community to support those businesses that will give a fair share of jobs to Negroes and to withdraw its support from those businesses that have discriminatory policies.”
-Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., excerpts from his article “Black Power Defined” (1967)
These two ideas are at the heart of Spike’s letter. Things will only change for POC when positions of power are transferred to those who are being oppressed; and the increasingly powerful “minority” demographic can affect change with the decisions they make when they watch shows and go to the movies.
Bridge of Spies is phenomenal.. And I’m not white.. lol yet to see SOC though..
Also, that was one of the best ACTING performances I’ve seen from Sly’s career..
Hmm, it’s quite subjective @ Jordan..
So true. Studies of TV viewers have proven this. White audiences gravitate toward TV shows about white people. Black audiences gravitate toward TV shows about black people. And the shows that were on both lists, included white and black characters. It’s not rocket science.
For the record, AFI, NBR and PGA all picked ”Compton” as one of the year’s top 10 films.
Well, I think you can’t name an Actor better than Daniel Day-Lewis. Also, I think you can’t name a better Actress than Cate Blanchett that is not called Meryl.
But you Americans have far better working filmakers than the brits. But you don’t aknowledge your best. Don’t know why. Probably the two best reviewed films of this decade are Boyhood and The Social Network. Both lost. Fincher is hated by AMPAS. Tarantino and Alexander Payne never won Director. Wes Anderson never won a single Oscar. It took decades for Spielberg, the Coens and even more time for Marty to receive an Oscar. You give a handful of nods and a best Actor win to a shitty biopic like The Theory of Everything and snub Selma across the board.
Oh yeah, so now you are accusing Asians for not speaking up? So we are supposed to be grateful for African American community for speaking up for us, you have no idea how Asians are treated in every field in this country. I object the fact that they protest in the name of diversity, but it is really about blacks mostly.
We all know Idris Elba was the only one with real chance of being nominated. Straight Outta Compton was really good but not necessarily Academy Award material… So Idris Elba got snubbed? A lot of good performances from white people were snubbed too: Michael Keaton, Jacob Tremblay, Jane Fonda, Kristen Stewart, Paul Dano… the list goes on. It should be about the performances and not the race. 12 Years A Slave, Precious and The Help won awards recently. Does Spike Lee want quota based on race now?
I fully share in your confusion.
You are totally right. I’m just frustrated at the industry as a whole.
The subtle point lost on many people is that the Oscars love period pieces (as usual, more than half the BP nominees are set in the past), and when Hollywood goes to the past, it makes it look whiter than it was. Sounds obvious, perhaps, but if Hollywood treated the past the way it treats the present, we wouldn’t be having the #oscarssowhite conversation. http://maptothefuture.com/to-change-its-history-hollywood-must-accurately-reflect-history/
Sincerely, I’d take anyone but Sly. Ruffalo, in special, If I had to choose only one. And Beasts did not have campaign issues, like Creed and Selma last year.
B. Jordan and Attah… Much better than Cranston and Redmayne.
Straight Outta Compton was not one of the best 10 films of the year. But it is not inferior than Bridge of Spies.
Fair point. I mentioned him because I didn’t like the movie or the performance. I can say the same about Cranston.
My reading of the tea leaves was that Fassbender was not a lock, but that’s just my take on it.
That was similar to my experience on opening weekend in Vegas, but the crowd was split 50-50, and it was the middle-aged white men (myself included) who were openly crying.
And what I’m trying to understand is: what happened between its opening week and nomination time? I was certain it would be included in all the major categories and editing, cinematography, and score. But when the Globes and guilds announced it wasn’t there.
I’m pissed. I heard that Warners had an embargo on early screenings — rapturously received screenings — which is a sure way of destroying buzz. By the time the film opened, it was competing with too many other last-minute releases.
But I just don’t understand how Fassbender gets nominated for a movie no one gives a shit about, and Jordan is passed over for a film that people love.
All I’m saying is that if you truly believe that Asians aren’t given enough representation in Hollywood (and that’s a sentiment I share), then going after the #OscarsoWhite hashtag and all the black people angry over the lack off diversity is not the way to go. How is that going to solve the issue? It’s pretty much justifying Hollywood’s racism. You’re giving them a pass, while criticizing Spike Lee and other black people.
The next time there are no Asians nominated for acting Oscars (while there is black representation) feel free to make a hashtag of your own.
The Big Short did that for me. 🙂
Nobody cares; that’s why people support his films and new talent flock to be in his films right..?
Yes, it should be about who is most deserving, but there should at least be a diverse conversation & competition beforehand..
Here’s the strategic genius of this: Spike knows perfectly well that there’s not a single executive who snubbed Michael B. Jordan or Will Smith or Idris Elba… because all 20 of those white acting nominees were chosen by the actors branch, not the executives. But the thing that he most wants changed is the executive board rooms, so he’s using his leverage to get that.
He says clearly that the academy is not the “real” battle, but he knows that a boycott of the box office won’t go anywhere, with the public still paying out money to see many of those films with all white casts, so he takes a symbolic stand against the academy instead.
And then he ends with a practical, realistic and achievable suggestion for change. It’s not burning down the academy. It’s not revoking life memberships and kicking out all the old folks. It’s not tearing down someone else’s art or insulting their work. It’s not berating them in the hopes they’ll change their tastes. It’s just an interview. A simple interview. How hard is that?
No one is saying that being white is a problem. You’re twisting words. The **problem** is that **because there is an overwhelming majority of white people** their choices for movies **tend to be mostly about the white experience** Again, no one is saying that movies about white people, or white people who like white movies are bad or evil. The whole point is that by having a voting body that is mostly white, the result is that movies about non-white experiences are less likely to be seen. It’s human nature that we gravitate toward things that we identify with. No one is faulting the individuals for their choices, we’re faulting the system for not doing more to include people of color in the voting process.
Your anger toward Asians is misguided. Hollywood is controlled by studio heads, a handful a CEO of studios make decisions about what kind of films get made. You obviously don’t know what you are talking about.
Idris Elba snubbed? Sure I’ll buy that argument, but hey, who out of the 5 nominees are you going to kick off that list? I think Creed and Straight Outta Compton were worthy of Best Picture nominations, but hey, who am I to say they are better than the 8 nominees. There are only 5 posssible nominees in every acting category, 20% of them do not have to go to African Americans just because the black community deems it worthy. Getting tired of these complaints every year. Wasn’t it just two years ago 12 Years a Slave and Lupita Nyongo dominated the Oscar discussion?
You do realize that the people who vote at the Oscars are also the ones who control Hollywood. It’s an industry award. The problem goes both ways. Criticizing AMPAS is pretty much criticizing studio heads.
Frankly, I think your anger towards black people (and that’s what’s coming across) is misguided.
lol i did not see the supporting sag i feel stupid now
I’d consider Supporting Actor at SAG a major award. If you want the last word, go ahead …
A lot of WB energy was put into Black Mass and In the Heart of the Sea. It wasn’t until those two hit the skids that they turned their attention
elsewhere. And Creed was the one that really needed their help because Mad Max had a longer lead in and passionate critical support.
So, there again, the problem is the color of the voting body.
No, they’re not. The Academy at large is being judge for choosing to have a voting body of mostly white, mostly male, mostly old people, as that demographic does not fully represent hollywood movies. No one’s blaming Cate Blanchett or Bryan Cranston.
Fucking hell.
Oh yes. I feel like the boy thing deserves to be discussed more closely. No i understand the awards you listed but without SAG ensemble none were major awards. I did not follow awards season during Slumdog i was way way too young but i never heard any buzz as far as i remember.
I understood the point. I’ll admit, that I didn’t care for the movie certainly colored my feelings on the necessity of Sturgess’s makeup.
“Every minority is on the same side.” I’m honestly not so sure about this. I loved Creed, and I’m disappointed to see Michael B. Jordan ignored. That said, I’ve seen numerous think pieces for this and other years, citing wonderful work by African American actors. I have seen far fewer think pieces that mention the wonderful work of actors like Tony Leung, Gong Li, Tang Wei and films like Better Luck Tomorrow, Poetry, Still Walking, etc…
This is from a prior comment I wrote on Hollywood Elsewhere. Just for perspective sake…
“I saw Creed at a matinee on its opening weekend. To my utter shock and surprise I was the only person of color in the auditorium which was at 90% capacity full. I kid you not, the entire demo for that screening was 50 and over, even split of white males and females. I’m thinking these people just rolled up into the wrong theater wanting to see Spotlight or something. Alright cool, I rolled with it, movie starts, nobody gets up to leave. During the final match, I’m hearing nothing but flared nostrils and a lot of clapping. The end credits roll, palm smacking applause…and nobody leaves until the lights come on, just sitting in their seats reflecting on what they just saw. To those who saw Trumbo or the Danish Girl or the Big Short for that matter, did anyone have a similar experience? Just wondering?”
TWO Asians? It’s hard enough to get ONE nominated. … And it’s not recent, but Haing S. Ngor (”Killing Fields”) and Pat Norita (”Karate Kid”) were both up for Supporting Actor in 1984, and that might be the first and last time that 2 Asian actors have been nominated in the same year.
Yet Lupita N’yongo, an unknown Kenyan actress, beat Jennifer Lawrence & Julia Roberts.
If only Mya Taylor been in a more high-profile movie, produced by Brad Pitt …
Were you hoping he would choose Finland?
I actually listed a number of prizes & nominations that Dev Patel got … in America.
I don’t know that the ”average” African-American cares about the Oscars any more than the ”average” Asian, but as a rule, the black community is more willing to stick up for perceived wrongs. Whereas many Asians are not. If Lee complained mightily about Sharma’s snub, I missed it. … Part of it might’ve due to the fact that he’s unknown. The other part is due to the Academy’s bias against boys. The older white male voters enjoy nominating girls and some girls win. But these guys rarely nominate boys … and a boy has never won an Oscar.
A great man once said: “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character.” Well, right now, 20 actors (plus 20 last year) are being judged by the color of their skin.
Blanchett is Oztralian mate!
i completely agree that critics are just as much as to blame if not more than the academy and its so pathetic how they’re being so damn hypocritical about the Oscarsowhite movement when they in fact usually lack diversity in handing their awards i.e New York, L.a or even Boston all gave their honours mostly to white dominated movies so its a much bigger problem than just AMPAS
And there is the fact that was her first movie, she was going against actresses who have being in the business for years. Previous nominee Rooney Mara, It girl Alicia Vikander( who did, like, 4 movies this year and could’ve been nominated for two), super veteran Kate Winslet, Famous,but never nominated Rachel Mcadams and another veteran never nominated Jeniffer Jason Leigh.
In the black community there is a saying that if you’re black and competing with a white person, in any field, you have to be twice as good to receive the recognition.
This year the black actors were just AS good.
Add to that the material that was available to them.
Viola Davis summed it up best when she won the Emmy
So true. I see some people trying to rationalize why this movie or that performer didn’t make the Oscar cut. But the problem is bigger. If those movies or performers were good enough to get nominated or noticed by other groups, why not the Academy? … You can put out all the acclaimed movies you want, starring people of color and the LGBT community, but if you have ancient voters who don’t seem interested in seeing those films, let alone nominating them, it’s fruitless.
Is that Slater from Saved by the Bell?
But Brits are better at acting. Like even their damning teenage soaps have very good acting.
Laziness. And probably a lot of them are infirm. Or bedridden. 😉
If the average age of the Oscar voter is 63, how many of them are in their 70s and 80s?
Yes. I do not understand how they are allowed to vote when there is no guarantee they saw everything that was qualified.
I definitly could see it happening, but again Tangerine’s distribuitor is Magnolia pictures, another who just started and has almost no chance going against the bigger ones. Weinstein, Fox, Warner they organize lunches, Q & A s, screenings, a bunch of things to promote their movies, Magnolia is ant compared to those elephants. The gothams usually like to reward the more indie movies, hence Mya winning, another example was Bel Polley winning against Brie Larson. There are many factors to consider for a movie to have Oscar chances.
No, the problem IS within the homophobic (Brokeback) sexist racist Academy. If there were no worthy films with people of color, OK, fine, the Academy should be looking for the so-called “best”. But PGA, SAG and WGA all nominated Straight Outta Compton! It was clearly in the running, and based upon the strength of those guilds, it was supposed to be nominated for Picture! It had support that Room (a film I prefer) and Brooklyn did not, and more than Bridge of Spies too. And Michael B. Jordan won Best Actor at the National Society of Film Critics, and was a contender elsewhere…more than Eddie Redmayne. And Beasts of No Nation, aside being arguably the finest English-language movie of the year, had a SAG ensemble nomination, a perfect reason to force the Academy to watch. But worst of all, Idris Elba had many precursor wins, was certainly top 5 supporting, certainly ahead of Ruffalo, Bale and especially Hardy in precursors. Precursors predict the Oscar nominations about 80%-85% of the time. We have all these precursors, yet not one person of color makes it in? C’mon. So yeah, Hollywood needs to make more high quality films with persons of color, but the Academy needs to start paying attention to the quality that’s there. And it is.
SAG members can be anyone tho. Figures some of them will be broke.
Absolutely true. Can you imagine how different the Oscar nominations would be if the membership were, say, 94% people of color, 76% women and the average age were 40? 😉
There is no way to ”certify” what they saw, but I seriously doubt they watched ”Beasts of No Nation” or ”Straight Outta Compton,” let alone anything like ”Tangerine.”
Mad Max owes everything to critics.
lol.
No i know about the BAFTAs but they are primarily a British prize and Dev Patel was then very hot in Britain. However it did not really cross over to the States. I personally thought he was pretty good but I am not angry he was not nominated. Like Suraj Sharma not being nominated kills me. Also LOL on Freida getting any nomination but Emma Stone got nominated last year for freaking Oscars so why shouldn’t she.
I dont think Oscars are something average Asians care about. I am sure there are excpetions but as a whole I have not seen many care.
You’re right. WB blew it with ”Creed.” And ”Mad Max” owes its awards buzz to the critics.
Tangerine was small but it could’ve gone a bit farther. Dope should have been considered heavily for screenplay and costumes (I’m not saying it should have made it for picture or director).
Those white devils…
Sincerely,
A whitey mcwhite white
Now that I think of it I barely remember Creed having a substantial campaign.
Tangerine could definitely have been nominated with the right push. If not Tangerine then Mya Taylor. She had the momentum for a bit, after the Gotham awards but everyone collectively dropped the ball on that one. I feel bad for my earlier comment. Sorry about that. I was fighting with whites somewhere else.
What merits contention is always a subjective call, but for the record, Dev Patel won awards from NBR (Breakthrough) and Broadcast Film Critics (Young Actor), and got numerous supporting nominations, including SAG. He even got a Leading Actor nom from BAFTA. Pinto got a Supporting nod from BAFTA, as well as shared a SAG Ensemble win with Patel. From ”Crouching Tiger,” Michelle Yeoh and Ziyi Zhang were nominated for many prizes.
I blame Asian-Americans for playing into the stereotype of being polite and quiet. The reason why OscarsSoWhite is getting people talking is because Spike Lee, Jada Pinkett Smith, the producer of ”Compton,” etc., are speaking out about the problem.
Honestly, when did i talk about racism? I was just telling that the movies he used as arguments would never be nominated ,for the reasons i stated, wether having Poc or White people. Someone who is used to the oscar race would be able to see it clearly, the problem is that people who never batted an eye for cinema before come here thinking they know what they are talking about but they don’t understand a tiny bit of the Oscar process. I am not saying the Oscars aren’t racist, because they are, but that an improvement has indeed started, there were more black people nominated in the past few years than when the Oscars began. The only movie that could be nominated, given the precursors was Comptom and the actor Elba( but again, he is in a netflix movie, a company who has started at the race now and is not a Fox or Weinstein).
It seems they figured out too late that Creed can be an awards player. Same with Mad Max. WB have been a mess in 2015.
Assasin was not eligible. Dheepan was so damn good I cannot believe it has not been in conversation.
Someone, somewhere at Warner Brothers dropped the ball when it came to CREED. It had excellent notices, but the campaign just wasn’t there — is it because they didn’t want to take attention away from Mad Max?
If so many middle-aged men wept openly at screenings (when I saw it in Vegas, people were losing it) then why didn’t enough middle-age men vote for it?
Oh, I disagree completely. I thought she was excellent and made that role come alive.
Well there you solved institutional racism.
Rooney Mara is so loaded it makes my head spin.
Tangerine is too small, Girlhood and Dope fall into the category of teenagers coming of age stories that the oscars almost never pay attention, just like Me and Earl and The Dying Girl and The Diary of a teenage girl. CaseClosed.
and the Rooney Rule is named after Rooney Mara’s Great Uncle.
Well as for Slumdog neither Dev Patel or Freida Pinto merited actual awards contention. But the small kid who played Dev Patel younger absolutely did. Agree on the other two but i kind of feel someone from Crouching Tiger won. Why blame Asian Americans?
Yes, but Lee has a history of being critical on the topic. Regardles of whether the latest crop of acting nominees was all-white or not, he was deserving. As I said, it’s also an olive branch.
You didn’t need to be psychic to see that OscarsSoWhite might repeat, based on Oscar buzz. The L.A. Times even did a story before the Academy deadline. And the Academy hired black producers and a black host to put on the next Oscarcast. That, too, was an olive branch.
Heck, even having a black woman to head the Academy was meant to be a sign of an evolving Academy. But these are ultimately all cosmetic changes. The only thing that substantively changes the nominations (or wins), is making over the membership.
They can’t know nominees ahead of time. Or else the entire process is a joke.
Many great directors don’t have Oscar. He isn’t a special case.
You said “you must have a short memory.” I was around for 2013 and I certainly remember what Sasha was writing back then with regards to 12 Years vs. Gravity.
So again, swing and a fucking miss. Strike 2.
Generally, there is NO outrage when Asian actors get shut out. I didn’t see any for ”Slumdog Millionaire,” or ”Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” or ”The Last Emperor,” etc. And I’d have to partly blame the Asian-American community for not being outspoken enough.
Excuse me, I’ve been around this site for 10 years. I was certainly around for 2013 and was pulling for Gravity over 12 Years. Try again.
The press is a big part of the problem, too. McAdams (”Notebook”) is a star, but did ANYONE see ANY stories about Tessa Thompson? She’s a 2014 Gotham Award winner. For ”Creed,” she not only acted, she sang and wrote songs for it. Meantime, the Hollywood Reporter holds a roundtable of EIGHT actresses, which includes those in supporting roles, and it’s ALL-WHITE. (I found this rare Time profile of Tessa …)
http://time.com/4129487/creed-tessa-thompson-cliche-movie-girlfriend/
Haven’t seen Spotlight, but from all the african-american actors in Oscar discussion Tessa Thompson had the weakest performance by miles. And this comes from someone who thinks Creed deserved a best picture slot
“And let’s be honest…when this site says people of color they really mean black people.”
Swing and a fucking miss.
Cloud Atlas was one of my favorite movies of the last ten years. There was a reason why actors played different races and it was more about seeing people beyond the current shell that they inhabit in a given lifetime on earth. So you missed the point of that film if you saw it.
But the thing about this issue is no one is saying Asians don’t have it worse. I agree. But when one group tells another group not to complain because they don’t have it as bad as them. it takes the heat off the actual bad guys. Do we not remember the Korean guy in DO THE RIGHT THING, who runs out of his rioted shop screaming “I’m black!”? I sure do. Every minority is on the same side. Comparing plights just moves the energy in the wrong direction.
Obviously it goes deeper than Oscars. Oscars have become a race that is pre determined by the media and industry personnel. I cannot think of a movie this year that caused major upset in Oscar season when it was not supposed to. New POC actors are given chances in this setup and thus have no buzz and it goes round and round.
I don’t have an issue with the hashtag either, it’s what comes afterword that I do. I’ve read in the opening paragraph to a number of different articles, “The #Oscarsowhite goes for another year when not one African American has been nominated.” It’s leaving everybody else out that gets me. Also, for the record, I’m not for nominating people to appear like they are diversifying. I believe artistic merit, above all else, must be rewarded. But as everybody else has been saying it goes much deeper than the Oscars.
This isn’t about black people. This is about everyone who isn’t white/straight/male. Lots of different types of people who don’t fit into that very narrow category were overlooked this time.
I hope Rami can make it to films next year as lead.
I’ve said a million times before that I think they should vote for the people who’ve done the best work in every category. I still think that. But what I don’t understand is in a year like this one how they miss everyone who isn’t completely white. It just doesn’t make logical sense. You can’t have watched movies this year, and I mean the ones everyone expects to be in the Oscar race, and not come up with someone who isn’t white or Inarritu. And honestly, he seems pretty white for a Mexican.
So I just don’t get how this happened this year if it’s not somehow racist and you know I don’t play those cards. How did they just miss? I really want someone to try to explain it to me.
Here’s the problem with Spike Lee writing this letter. Everyone expects him to. So he’s correct. Some white people need to make a stink this time because it’s ridiculous. Because he’s an activist type people will just ignore him like “Oh, him again”. People of all backgrounds who aren’t normally vocal need to stand up this time.
But there was outrage about BDT not making it from like common people not even film twitter. See at this point when people try to pick apart OscarsSoWhite about how it is more about black people than other POC, secially white people it kind of feels like divide and rule. I am Asian and i have no qualms about the hashtag. But another user said he did. But none of it takes away from the fact that Oscars are predominantly white this year.
As he says:
“The Academy Awards is not where the ‘real’ battle is. It’s in the executive office of the Hollywood studios and TV and cable networks. This is where the gate keepers decide what gets made and what gets jettisoned to ‘turnaround’ or scrap heap. This is what’s important. The gate keepers. Those with ‘the green light’ vote.”
Also that POC are interchangeable and it is OK for Chiwetel Ejiofor to play a character called Venkat Kapoor becase hey atleast he is not white.
He’s right. Rachel McAdams nominated for getting upset at her dishwasher over Tessa Thompson’s work in CREED? I mean, come on.
Girlhood, Tangerine and Dope require your attention.
I personally have seen outrage when Suraj Sharma was not in awards contention for Life of Pi. I did not follow Oscars then so i do not know if it were the critics but definitely people were talking about it. It is not a race between Blacks, Asians, Latinos etc. A diversified Oscar would help everybody involved.
See i saw someone on Twitter say that anyone who has not been involved in 10 years should not be allowed to vote. But as you said i doubt anyone has the guts to even mention this in a proper scope. AMPAs are messy. They let Polanski and Allen continue. They will not let go of the whites no matter what.
Honestly, did you ever expect the Oscars to nominate “Tangerine” for everything. I put them on my simulated ballot and they were still not nominated even here. Hell, we only managed to nominated Michael B Jordan, and even he barely made it. Do you think the user-base of awardsdaily is overwhelmingly racist? Spike Lee is correct, the problem starts much earlier than the Oscars.
I agree with most of what you said, but Cloud Atlas required the same actors play multiple different roles. If it wasn’t Jim Sturgess then an Asian would need to be hired to play an Asian character and 2 or 3 white characters. There was always going to be cross-race in the acting. I believe those that really complained may not have even seen the movie.
I meant POC should have been nominated in their place.
There were only three good African American films worth of recognition, Creed, Beats of no Nation, and Straight outta Compton. So the problem is not the Academy is the Industry. Spike Lee doesn’t know what he’s talking about. The Academy shouldn’t feel forced to nominate a black film to prove a point. If they didn’t like none of the black films, they didn’t like it.
Asians have the toughest of times being nominated which is why I get so annoyed when #Oscarsowhite is really more about black people not being nominated, or rather that’s what pundits, critics and bloggers focus on the most. Latinos, Asians and Middle Easterners are hardly recognized as much. I get the whole #Oscarsowhite but when most people focus on one minority and leave out
the others it totally undermines the entire narrative/hashtag.
I believe the top pick for many critics this year, The Assassin, should’ve been in the Oscar mix, along with Tangerine, a film featuring Hispanic actors, Black actors and trans actors, and Dheepan, a fantastic movie about Sri Lankan immigrants in France. I also would’ve liked to see recognition for Benicio Del Toro in Sicario, and yes Creed and Beasts Of No Nation. Straight Outta Compton? Not so much.
But see, that’s not accurate. Michael B Jordan WON several critics’ awards for Best Actor. The actresses Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor were recognized several times for their work in Tangerine. And as you mentioned, Elba was in the mix everywhere, including SAG and the Globes. Overall, maybe there wasn’t a massive proliferation of minority actors being recognized, but there were definitely a few and ALL of them got left out of the Oscars.
When I say poc I mean all people who are not Caucasian. If Creed or Compton was nominated I would still have issues with Carol not getting a nod. Lgbtq are even more under represented in Hollywood. Latinos and Asian Americans are blazing trails on tv yet movies still lag behind. The whitewashing of movies like Aloha and Gods of Egypt has gotten a lot of coverage.
Well all the performances you listed cannot be played by anybody who is not white since they are all biopics.
If it weren’t for ”The Revenant,” would there be any Native Americans on the big screen this year? … As for Arabs, sadly, they usually pop up only as terrorists or bombers. Shall I assume they make up a lot of anonymous extras in ”13 Hours”? … There was a breakthrough at the Broadcast Film Critics Awards: Egyptian-Americans Sam Esmail and Rami Malek both won for ”Mr. Robot.” 🙂
Most of the media criticizing AMPAS don’t have any poc movie critics on staff. It’s a big issue. You can’t put it all on one part when it’s system wide.
Above all, moviegoers are worldwide, regardless of sex, race, or skin color; that’s a perennial fact.
It should not be framed as a black and white issue, but as an Asian, I find it offensive when the public keeps using the word “diversity”, it really doesn’t include Asians or other races except blacks. So that is not really diversity.
Thank God for the NAACP Image Awards, the African-American Film Critics, and other diverse film groups. At least SAG nominated SOC, BONN, and Idris Elba. Along with last year’s omissions of Ava Duvarnay, David Oyelowo, and others,I hope AMPAS members will sacrifice some time and check out movies featuring outstanding diverse contributions highlighted by astute film critics. Yes, the times are changing, and our world is more global than ever before, and will never go back.
I’m gonna be cynical. While Spike Lee deserves an honorary Oscar, I suspect it was the Academy’s way of offering an olive branch (and possibly, a pre-emptive strike), knowing the issue wasn’t going away.
“40 white actors in 2 years and no flava at all.”
It’s disturbing, albeit unsurprising, that the #OscarsSoWhite meme has so efficiently and effectively focused on Hollywood’s lack of recognition of black filmmakers thereby ignoring the countless other minority groups marginalized in Hollywood. In Jason’s letter to Sasha he said: “I’m just so angry right now because, yet again, hollywood [sic] has said my life is not important. White men have spoken and said, “We are the only ones who should be heard, applauded, and rewarded.” We are white men, and we are the ones that matter.”
Now imagine being an Asian American, whose only images from Hollywood are that of Long Duk Dong and Mr. Yunioshi. We have to put up with Ridley Scott’s condescending remarks about casting Asians – telling us to get a life because we dare complain. We’ve put up with Jim Sturgess and Mackenzie Davis playing Asian characters.
Diversity means all races. It’s not a competition. Race is usually framed as a black-and-white issue, but some journalists DID point to other actors of color who didn’t make the cut, like Benicio del Toro, etc.
Yes, the lack of diversity is a larger issue than just the Academy. We need to see more people of color in movies (as actors, directors, writers, etc.), but also as studio execs, film critics, showbiz reporters …
As for OscarsSoWhite, that’s not gonna change as long as its demographics are 94% white, 76% male and their average age is 63. If anyone doesn’t think race & sex play some factor in which movies get seen and nominated, you’re an idiot. Boone Isaacs has pushed to increase its numbers of women and people of color, but adding a couple hundred new members a year (to an Academy of 6,000) is liking using a paper cup to bail out the Titanic. They need to make a drastic change to its ”lifetime membership” rule because as long as its ranks are the ”Jurassic World” of oldtimers, it’s gonna take decades to reflect more diverse tastes.
The Baseball Hall of Fame just made a big change: If a reporter hasn’t covered baseball in the past 10 years, he/she loses their voting privilege. As a result, the Hall cut about 100 voters from its ranks of 600-plus. The Academy needs to do something similar: If you haven’t worked on a movie in the past 10 years, you lose your voting privilege. If you work again, you get reinstated. But I suspect no one has the guts to do this, let alone face the pushback from the Oscar dinosaurs who have enjoyed decades of white privilege.
Are Native Americans/First Nations and/or Arab Americans represented on the screen more than Asians/Asian Americans?
Well said. I’m looking at my list of movies and performances and I can’t think of anything apart from Creed and Jordan and he wasn’t getting any love from anywhere. Are the BAFTA, the guilds and critics racist, too? That is ridiculous. Didn’t 12 Years of Slave won BP recently? What this site and some media outlets suggest is actually disrespectful to the black artist, with the encouragement of rewarding people regardless their performance just to keep the balance right.
Out of the 5 nominees, McKay was my personal favorite but I wouldn’t have argued with any of the three you mentioned being nominated either. Coogler is going to win a Best Director Oscar within ten years, he’s just got “it” and he plays the game well.
I’m going to say it here, and loud. This year, Ryan Coogler’s Creed was the closest, an African-American film was, to be nom’d for Oscar. And it got only one nom, for Stallone, which, oddly enough, is the heart and soul of the film and the most deserving nomination possible. It didn’t reach more noms, as it was a really complex year and competition was quite strong anywhere… we could argue that Will Smith in Concussion, or Samuel L. Jackson in Hateful 8 were also in consideration, but failed. Chi-Raq, regretfully, fell under the radar, but hey, Spike did win an extraordinarily deserving Lifetime Achievement Oscar. So, once more… the problem isn’t as much, AMPAS being SO white, but Hollywood not being enough diverse on all terms. That’s what has to be worked out… and having SW7, lead by John Boyega, and an upcoming Marvel Project about Black Panther, are moves in the right direction to fix that.
Actually it would have been much worse if any black actors had been nominated due to their race and not for their merit of their performance. Fact is apart from Netflix product Elba there wasn’t any performance this year unfortunately that belong to the very best. Didn’t see articles about all-white critics award or many other guilds who did exactly what the AMPAS did. That is hypocritical. It is unfair to carry on posting articles regarding this and pretend like it’s all the AMPAS fault. This site is better than being narrow-minded and one sided journalism. Come on now!
I think Michael B Jordon was one of the most underrated performance of the year. One of the more honest, thoughtful and not over the top performances of the year.
I did not hate McKay but he was not better than Coogler, Haynes and Scott in my opinion.
Respectfully The Big Short was a fantastic movie and McKay deserved that nomination. I don’t think Ruffalo had a lot to do with being white so much as having the hammiest scene in the Best Picture favorite. As far as the rest you listed, they all could have been subbed in or out in my opinion, so I agree.
With all due respect. I am so tired of this ranting and raving about race. If Creed was nominated for 3 or 4 more categories like Best Directing, Best Actor, nobody would have given a flying fuck. Lets face it, it is not about people of color, it is about mostly African Americans. I am so freaking tired of racist accusations from the public. There is not one Asian actor or individual who was nominated, not one gay actor was nominated, do we honestly think it is about just “people of color” and not just about blacks? Trust me, I am a liberal and I believe in diversity, but you want to complain, blame the studios and stop taking out on the Academy. Spike Lee said 12 Years A Slave’s win is just a bone thrown to the black community as a consolation price(I am paraphrasing), so in other words, no matter what Academy does, it is not going to be good enough unless Concussion or Creed were nominated for 10 or 12 Oscars, then that would be great, and I guarantee no one would have said anything about the lack of ASIANS,gays or Latinos. So DGA is racist as well? SAG is pretty racist because there is only one or two nods for blacks. This is such nonsense, and as as Asian, we are on the bottom of the film industry, and no one cares.
I feel like the film media should take up responsibility for this a bit. It is weird to see Scott Feinberg retweeting things about the lack of diversity when THR did not make any attempt to include people of colour in their actress lineup whoch was the most open this year along with in their directors lineup( except Inarritu). If they had stood behind films like SOC, Creed, Beasts of No Nation like they did with Mad Max one of them would have atleast made BP.
Eddie Redmayne for Danish Girl
Bryan Cranston for Trumbo
Mark Ruffalo for Spotlight
Jennifer Lawrence for Joy
Kate Winslet for Jobs
Adam McKay for The Big Short
Bridge of Spies as Best Picture contender
None of these would happen if the people were not white as fuck. Have they not only not earnt their nomination they would in some cases be ridiculed if they were played by POC. Case in point Kate Winslet’s awful accent is never brought up but everyone has opinions of Will Smith in Concussion.
Have two Asians been nominated in recent years? I feel like Asians have a tougher time with films like Slumdog sweeping but no attention given to the acting at all.
It won’t. I will weep with joy if it happened but no it won’t.
For you does not equal for the race. SAG is a huge thing and it does not matter if you personally buy into it or not, sorry. Nothing about this is personal.
Watch Mad Max race them all to the finish line and get first place eheheh
Straight Outta Compton deserved more then it got. O’Shea Jr was tremendous as his father. The whole cast delivered. One of my favorites from 2015!
What if most of the nominees are all white again next year? Does anyone think that the Academy will finally change in a couple of months? I don’t think so, sadly.
I don’t get it. Isn’t Spike Lee getting an honorary Oscar a sign that the Academy doesn’t care about skin color? While I do agree that the issue are the executives in the room, I don’t see how not showing up changes that. As they say, “the show must go on”.
He lost me at “the greatest country on this God’s Earth?”
Good point, but it was always borderline for me. It also missed BAFTA though and I don’t buy into the SAG ensemble argument.
Movies are supposed to be about telling stories from different perspectives and making you experience things you haven’t or couldn’t experience on your own, when did that all change for the academy voters? They seem to just fall back on what makes them feel good not what challenges them, how many more movies about white-men-in-distress or white-men-doing-important-stuff are going win best picture? Tangerine and its cast run circles around most of the BP contenders, but that wasn’t at all in the awards conversations. Academy definitely needs some big changes.
Tangerine was definitely in contention for acting and arguably deserved to get in for actress and supporting actress.
I watched Revenant yesterday. As much as I love it I feel it got nominated for too much but the score was one of the best things about it and deserved more attention.
My understanding is that you can have two composers but you can’t have additional music by credits as well. Revenant had two composers and additional music by.
Any movie except Revenant, Spotlight and Big Short does not have a chance of winning. Should they have nominated just 3 then? SOC made PGA, SAG ensemble, AFI if i recall correctly. Makes a lot of sense people thought it would get nominated atleast.
Ah yes double composers…that’s what kept The Dark Knight out, correct? But Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross won so weren’t the rules changed? I know Ross and Reznor worked together so maybe that’s why they got in.
Ok.
What is untrue?
I will say the one true snub is Idris Elba. There is no excuse and he should have gotten nominated. Otherwise yes Cranston and Redmayne are better than Jordan this year hands down.
While they may have been fringe contenders without a real shot at winning, the argument is that why does every close call go to a white actor. Why do mediocre Oscar bait biopics about white men always get bullshit nominations while those same type of movies directed and starring women and minorities get labeled with never a real contender. Is Bridge of Spies really a better movie than Creed and Compton? Cranston or Redmayne over Michael B Jordan? Jason Mitchell or Elba in supporting? I don’t think any of these are incredible snubs or should be winners but every one went to a white actor or a white centric movie.
With a nod to Mary McCarthy…. every word of Luke’s comment is untrue, including “at” and “the”.
The only reason The Revenant score wasn’t nominated was because it had additional music by Bruce Dressner which disqualifies it. Dumb rule I know. And yes it was very worthy of a nomination.
Definitely a good message but once again it’s about all minorities, not just black people. I guarantee you if two Asians were nominated then we’d still see #Oscarsowhite. Which brings me to a slightly related question, does anybody know why the score for The Revenant wasn’t eligible?
Nobody cares about Spike Lee. He’s a washed up director who peaked at the tail end of the 80’s. What bugs me about this is that Creed, Will Smith, and Straight Outta Compton were never even real Oscar contenders to begin with so why is it such a surprise they didn’t get in? It’s not like any of them had a chance in hell of winning anyway. Nominations shouldn’t be about diversity, they should be about who is most deserving.