Let’s start this with a disclaimer: I am a white cisgender female from a middle-class upbringing. I have a few undergraduate classes under my belt pertaining specifically to Media and Cinema studies. I am not any sort of expert in race relations, nor am I claiming that I have any authority in the film world. These opinions are my own and do not necessarily reflect the views of Her Campus DePaul.
Now that that’s out of the way, let me tell you not only why I am not watching the Oscars (even though I once co-wrote an article about throwing a bomb Oscar party), but also why I am more hopeful that theatre will make a huge comeback in the wake of the recent diversity outcry.
It is no secret that the Academy has recently decided to start making strides in diversity-related ways. They have set out new regulations to keep the Academy’s voters fresh and varied. This is a small step and should be duly noted, but it doesn’t solve the bigger issue. Emmy Winner Viola Davis spoke to ET at Elle Magazine’s “Women in Television” event saying that Hollywood as a whole has an issue with diversity, not just the Academy. “You can change the Academy, but if there are no black films being produced, what is there to vote for?” She goes further to ask the wider producer and director network in Hollywood, “[Are you] thinking outside of the box in terms of how to cast the role? Can you cast a black woman in that role? Can you cast a black man in that role?”
Blockbuster musical, Hamilton, answers Davis’ question with a resounding (and perfectly on-key) yes. It’s a musical set in the late 1700s when race relations were arguably worse than they are now, slavery was completely accepted as normal, and African-Americans did not have any of the same rights as white people. Even still, Lin-Manuel Miranda, creator and star of the play, deliberately cast actors of color in founding fathers’ roles. He told The Hollywood Reporter, “We’re telling the stories of old, dead white men but we’re using actors of color, and that makes the story more immediate and more accessible to a contemporary audience.” Easy. How do you make your movie, theatre production, or television show more diverse? You cast diverse actors. Historically, the founding fathers have been cast time and time again as white men because, yes, they were white men. Does it change the story to have Alexander Hamilton played by a Latinx actor? Hardly. Eliminating any doubt, the show has been critically acclaimed as historically accurate and accessible to younger generations – Miranda even invited some AP United States History class students to attend.
Waitress, Sara Bareilles’ new musical, has an all-female creative team. The 2015 Tony for Best Musical went to Fun Home, the first Broadway musical with a lesbian protagonist.
All of this is to say that if an American pastime that pre-dates film entirely can be more progressive and diverse than Hollywood, the problem cannot be with lack of colorful, talented actors, but with the casting system in place.
The Oscar actor nominations this year do reflect some semblance of diversity. 2015 was huge for LGBT+ rights in America, and nominated films do reflect that. Carol’s two principle actresses received nominations for their roles. Eddie Redmayne is nominated for his role as a transgender woman in The Danish Girl. For the latter, though, the question must be begged: couldn’t a trans* actor have filled Redmayne’s role? If assessors of media look at Netflix’s Orange is the New Black (a critically acclaimed television show that is deliberately diverse in its casting and storytelling), Laverne Cox has expertly and genuinely told a trans* woman’s story. She herself is a trans woman. There are other trans women actors out there. Did the casting directors seek someone who, having experienced the transition firsthand, could have brought a different level of intimacy to the role?
That is the greater problem in Hollywood that Davis points out in her interview with ET. In an age where there are more television, film, and theatre productions than ever before on highly-customizable media such as Netflix, YouTube, and Amazon, it is hard to stick around and watch the exclusionary content that the Academy deems worthy of what is considered Hollywood’s highest honor.
For that reason, I will not watch the Oscars this year. There are other shows, movies, short films, YouTube series, and theatre productions that reflect what America really is today. The great thing about living in this country is that even though the majority of recognized content might not reflect what you or I or your friend next door want to see, you can choose to find something that does. If what you’re looking for doesn’t exist, there are resources out there, including right here at DePaul, so you can produce the sort of content that you want to see. Miranda did it.
You can choose to watch the Oscars. You can choose to head over to the AMC Best Picture showcase and binge-watch the nominees. Decide for yourself if that’s something that you want to consume. I won’t be sitting next to you, but I won’t stop you. In fact, I might just be listening to the Hamilton recording on repeat instead.