Jimmy Kimmelthe host of the 95th Academy Awards on Sunday pointed out the notorious sexism of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences during his opening monologue, joking: “How does the Academy not nominate the man who directed Avatar? What do they think he is, a woman ?”
While some might argue that the Academy has progressed in recent years as more diverse voices and perspectives are represented among nominees and winners, a 2020 Emerson College study found that over 92 years, “the Oscar-winning Best Picture has been awarded nearly twice is more likely to nominate male actors (lead and supporting) than female,” per Variety. This long history of sexism and gender bias in the Oscars points to differences in recognition for women (and people of color) and the lack of diversity in the Academy.
Yet there are ongoing debates among critics and those in the industry about the extent to which systemic bias continues to influence the Academy Awards. As the Emerson College study shows, there’s no denying that the Oscars have historically been plagued by sexism, racism, and lack of diversity, that women and people of color have been consistently overlooked at major awards for years, and that the Academy itself existed (even this year) predominantly of older, white males.
However, there has been a growing awareness and drive for change in the industry in recent years. For example, the #OscarsSoWhite campaign eight years ago drew attention to the lack of representation of people of color in the nominations, leading to changes in the Academy’s membership and voting procedures — at least for a short while.
“2015 was the first of two consecutive years of all-white actor nominees, and historically white males have dominated in the Best Director categories,” DePaul University professor and filmmaker Rachel Bass told me. WTTW. “So after 2016, we saw a bit of a knee-jerk reaction from the Academy then Moonlight won best picture, you had best supporting actor Mahershala Ali won, Viola Davis for Fences. And so there was a little bit more representation. But I think now we’re back to most, mostly all white leads and all white actors. And with the exception of Daniel Kwan, a lineup of all-white male directors, the question is, was 2017 a fluke, or was it seen as a handout, or was there lasting deep systemic change?”
a Inclusion Initiative USC Annenberg study looked at the lasting impact of the #OscarsSoWhite campaign:
When April Reign unleashed #OscarsSoWhite, she tapped into the collective desire for change and the outrage people felt when they saw actors of color once again excluded from this career-defining award. This comprehensive look at the Oscars shows that exclusion was normative for many years and is still prevalent in many categories. But it also shows that there is power in collective action and that energy has made the years since #OscarsSoWhite no longer seem like the years before.
When USC narrowed the focus to the eight years before and eight years after #OscarsSoWhite, the researchers found that the campaign had a notable impact on the diversity of Oscar nominees and winners. Only 8% of nominees came from an underrepresented racial/ethnic group between 2008 and 2015. However, between 2016 and 2023, that figure increased to 17%. Even for female nominees, the percentage jumped from 21% to 27% in the same time frame.