People criticized the Academy on social media using the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite following the announcement of Oscar nominees which include no actors of color.
- Jan 16, 2015
AceShowbiz - This year's Academy Awards has been branded whitewashing by many people on social media. Movie fans reacted to the announcement of the Oscar nominees, which features no actors of color for the first time since 1998, on social media using the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite after the nominees were unveiled on Thursday, January 15.
"#OscarsSoWhite they don't see race. Or movies with black folks in it, apparently," one Twitter user wrote. "#OscarsSoWhite that even 'The Lego Movie' didn't get nominated for Best Animated Film because Morgan Freeman voiced a character," another person added.
David Oyelowo who plays Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in "Selma" is not included into the list of Best Actor nominees. The Best Director category additionally is dominated by white men. Ava DuVernay ("Selma") and Angelina Jolie ("Unbroken") are skipped from the category. "Selma" is now up for Best Picture and its song "Glory" by Common and John Legend is among contenders for Best Original Song.
"SELMA? One of the best pics of the year. But the directing, script, all the acting, & cinematography? Meh.. Nice song, though," Patton Oswalt tweeted.
50 Shades of White: The Academy Awards edition. pic.twitter.com/amVXq92FYf
— Sean McElwee (@SeanMcElwee) January 15, 2015So Selma is one of the best movies of the year, but it's director and lead actor weren't worth recognizing? Go home Academy, you're racist.
— babe frohman (@jodielayne) January 15, 2015#Oscarssowhite they can't see a problem in this - The diversity gap in the Academy Awards #Oscars2015 #OscarNoms pic.twitter.com/UOZLOM9Mnl"
— Media Diversified (@WritersofColour) January 15, 2015Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Science president Cheryl Boone Isaacs denied that the organization did not recognize diversity in movies. Speaking to Vulture, Isaacs who is the first African-American president of the Academy said on Thursday, "Not at all. Not at all."
"The good news is that the wealth of talent is there, and it's being discussed, and it's helpful so much for talent - whether in front of the camera or behind the camera - to have this recognition, to have this period of time where there is a lot of publicity, a lot of chitter-chatter," Isaacs added.
