The Oscars will undergo sweeping eligibility reforms, with Best Picture category nominees required to meet specific representation standards from the 2024 Academy Awards onwards, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences announced Tuesday night.
Why it matters: The move is in response to years of criticism that the Academy is too male and too white. "The standards are designed to encourage equitable representation on and off screen in order to better reflect the diversity of the movie-going audience," the Academy said in a statement.
Change starts now. We've announced new representation and inclusion standards for Best Picture eligibility, beginning with the 96th #Oscars. Read more here: https://t.co/qdxtlZIVKb pic.twitter.com/hR6c2jb5LM
— The Academy (@TheAcademy) September 9, 2020
The big picture: The Academy revealed in June it was working on diversity and inclusion requirements. Under the new rules to go, movies must from 2024 meet standards in at least two of four broad categories. These include:
- That the main storyline's theme or narrative of a film must be centered on an underrepresented group — listed as women, a racial or ethnic group, LGBTQ+ or people with disabilities.
- That at least one lead actor or significant supporting actor is from an underrepresented racial or ethnic group.
- That at least 30% of minor actors and crew are from underrepresented groups.
Go deeper: Films vying for Oscars must meet diversity qualifications, Academy says
