In diversity push, Oscars Academy invites Awkwafina, Constance Wu, Ana de Armas and other non-white actresses to join
- Asian-American stars of Crazy Rich Asians, upcoming Bond girl Ana de Armas, and Joker star Zazie Beetz among minority actresses to get Academy invitations
- The Academy’s board of governors vowed four years ago to double the number of women and non-white members by 2020 after #OscarsSoWhite backlash on social media
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Young actresses Awkwafina, Zendaya and Constance Wu were among those invited to join Hollywood’s Academy on Tuesday, as the Oscars-awarding club opened its prestigious doors to a diverse crop of new members.
Slammed again at the Oscars this year for nominating just one non-white actor, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has boosted its efforts to increase female and ethnic minority membership in recent times.
The majority of actors invited to join this year were women, and more than half were from “under-represented ethnic/racial communities”, said an Academy statement.
Cynthia Erivo – the sole non-white acting nominee at February’s Oscars, for Harriet – was on Tuesday’s list of invitees, along with Eva Longoria, Joker star Zazie Beetz and upcoming Bond girl Ana de Armas.
“We have always embraced extraordinary talent that reflects the rich variety of our global film community, and never more so than now,” said Academy President David Rubin.
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Seen as the apex body of the Hollywood film industry, the Academy issues a single round of invitations annually.
The organisation has grown vastly more international in recent years, tripling its non-US membership since 2015.
The board of governors vowed four years ago to double the number of women and non-white members by 2020, following calls to boycott the glitzy Oscars and an angry social media backlash under the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite.
The move towards racial equality in Hollywood has come under further scrutiny in the wake of the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis in May, which spurred massive protests across the United States under the banner of “Black Lives Matter”.
Movie studios and stars have flocked to express their support for the movement, from public statements and inclusion initiatives to the removal of TV episodes featuring “blackface” and warnings over outdated titles such as Gone with the Wind .
The Academy has now surpassed its membership goals, with 45 per cent of this year’s intake women, and 36 per cent minorities.
Achieving those targets has drastically boosted the overall size of the Academy membership, which was traditionally capped at around 6,000 members.
Tuesday’s intake of 819 sees the body approach 10,000 members, though the number of invitees is slightly down from the past two years’ record numbers.
Earlier in June, the Academy said it would introduce new eligibility rules to boost diversity among Oscars nominees.
It did not give any details about the new rules, but said the changes were intended to “encourage equitable hiring practices and representation on and off screen”.
