Lupita Nyong’o disappointed by 'white' Oscars
What you need to know:
The reactions from actors, both black and white, have been furious with popular social networking site Twitter erupting in a hashtag #OscarsSoWhite.
Filmmaker Spike Lee and actor Jada Pinkett Smith have announced that they plan to boycott the award ceremony in protest.
According to the New York Times’ chief film critic, the problem is evident in the lack of opportunities for black and Hispanic actors in Hollywood in general.
Black Comedian Chris Rock is slated to host the awards which will take place on the 28th of next month.
Award winning actress Lupita Nyong’o has added her voice to those expressing displeasure over the fact that all the nominees for this year’s Academy Awards, popularly known as the Oscars, are white.
Ms Nyong’o, who won an Oscar for best supporting actress in 2013 for her role in the movie 12 Years A Slave, took to social media Wednesday to say how disappointed she is that no black actors made it to the list this year.
“I am disappointed by the lack of inclusion in this year’s Academy Awards nominations. It has me thinking about unconscious prejudice and what merits prestige in our culture.
The Awards should not dictate the terms of art in a modern society, but rather be a diverse reflection of the best of what our art has to offer today. I stand with my peers who are calling for change in
expanding the stories that are told and recognition for the people who tell them,” said Ms Nyong’o in an Instagram post.
The Oscars, the most prestigious film awards in the US, have come under heavy criticism for not nominating a single non-white actor in the past two years.
The reactions from actors, both black and white, have been furious with popular social networking site Twitter erupting in a hashtag #OscarsSoWhite.
Filmmaker Spike Lee and actor Jada Pinkett Smith have announced that they plan to boycott the award ceremony in protest.
Nyong’o has however not indicated whether she intends to attend the show or not.
"HEARTBROKEN AND FRUSTRATED"
The president of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (the body that oversees the nominations and the selection of Oscar winners) Cheryl Boone Isaacs, who is black, said in a statement that
she is “heartbroken and frustrated” at the all-white list.
“We have implemented changes to diversify our membership in the last four years. But the change is not coming as fast as we would like. We need to do more, and better and more quickly,” she said in a statement.
According to Ms Manohla Dargis, the New York Times’ chief film critic, the problem is not only in the nominations of white actors for major awards, but in the lack of opportunities for black and Hispanic actors in Hollywood in general.
“The primary reason the Oscars are so white this year and most years is that the movie industry is overwhelmingly white. That’s infuriating, but that’s not shocking, and it sure isn’t news,” said Ms Dargis in a commentary about the Oscar nominations.
Black Comedian Chris Rock is slated to host the awards which will take place on the 28th of next month.
