In diversity push, Oscars invite Andra Day, Laverne Cox, Steven Yeun into membership
Oscar (membership invitation) goes to…
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences invited 395 artists and executives to its membership ranks, the awards body announced Thursday.
Actor invitees include Oscar nominees Andra Day, Maria Bakalova, Vanessa Kirby, Leslie Odom, Jr. and Steven Yeun as well as this year’s best supporting actress winner Yuh-Jung Youn. Laverne Cox, Carrie Coon, Clea Duvall, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Issa Rae, Henry Golding and Jurnee Smollett are also among this year’s class.
Director inductees include Janicza Bravo (“Zola”), Lee Isaac Chung (“Minari”), Shaka King (“Judas and the Black Messiah”) and Emerald Fennell (“Promising Young Woman”). Odom was also nominated by the music branch, as was H.E.R., Janet Jackson and Meshell Ndegeocello.
819 new members.
The Academy chooses its membership based on professional qualifications with an eye toward representation, inclusion and equity, according to the statement.
Increasing diversity within the group has been a major initiative since the outcry resulting from #OscarsSoWhite in January 2016, when the Academy nominated an entirely white slate of actors for a second year in a row.
The future of inclusion in Hollywood:How helpful are the new Oscars diversity standards?
British Academy of Film and Television Arts nominations.BAFTA unveils survey, addresses ‘defamatory’ Noel Clarke claims
Under new rules that, among other things, made watching all long-listed films compulsory for BAFTA voters, this year’s slate of acting nominees was strikingly more diverse, and four of the six filmmakers nominated for best director were women.
A recent BAFTA survey showed women make up 37.4% of current members; 12.2% of voting members are from minority ethnic groups; 5.3% have a disability; and 9.7% are part of the LGBTQ community.
In fall 2020, the Oscars updated its requirements in the name of diversity for best-picture hopefuls come 2024. In a test, USA TODAY fact-checked this year’s slate of nominees to find out whether they would qualify under the future standards – and found that all the films passed.
Experts say time will tell to see whether the standards and other efforts across Hollywood will lead to actual, meaningful inclusion.
Report card:Would this year’s Oscar best picture nominees meet 2024 inclusion standards?
Contributing: Brian Truitt and Elise Brisco, USA TODAY; The Associated Press