The 2020 BAFTA nominations came out this morning across the pond. Just another reminder that this year’s awards season is kind of ridiculous! And just FYI: the Oscar nominations come out next Monday, the 13th. You can see the full list of BAFTA nominations here at THR. The big ones:
Best Film
1917
The Irishman
Joker
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
ParasiteDirector
1917, Sam Mendes
The Irishman, Martin Scorsese
Joker, Todd Phillips
Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood, Quentin Tarantino
Parasite, Bong Joon HoLeading Actress
Jessie Buckley, Wild Rose
Scarlett Johansson, Marriage Story
Saoirse Ronan, Little Women
Charlize Theron, Bombshell
Renée Zellweger, JudyLeading Actor
Leonardo Dicaprio, Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Adam Driver, Marriage Story
Taron Egerton, Rocketman
Joaquin Phoenix, Joker
Jonathan Pryce, The Two PopesSupporting Actress
Laura Dern, Marriage Story
Scarlett Johansson, Jojo Rabbit
Florence Pugh, Little Women
Margot Robbie, Bombshell
Margot Robbie, Once Upon A Time… In HollywoodSupporting Actor
Tom Hanks, A Beautiful Day In The Neighborhood
Anthony Hopkins, The Two Popes
Al Pacino, The Irishman
Joe Pesci, The Irishman
Brad Pitt, Once Upon A Time… In Hollywood
Do you see an issue? I see an issue – no Jennifer Lopez for Hustlers! Which sucks. But apparently, it’s even bigger than that. A few years ago, there was some low-key commentary in the UK about how the BAFTAs have a “so white” problem, just like the Oscars. The focus at the time was about how the BAFTAs have never nominated Denzel Washington or Morgan Freeman for anything. The BAFTAs also have a history of rarely nominating any actors of color in the lead categories, and for snubbing Barry Jenkins in particular. So… it’s a thing this year. BAFTAs So White.
#BAFTAsSoWhite is trending on Twitter after a race row erupted over the all-white acting nominations. Academy boss, Amanda Berry, admitted she was ‘very disappointed’ over the lack of diversity following Tuesday morning’s announcement, which saw not a single actor of colour honoured in the major acting categories.
BAFTA was heavily criticised after the nominations were revealed, with movie fans taking to social media with the hashtag to call out Lupita Nyong’o’s snub for Us, while Margot Robbie was nominated twice in the Supporting Actress category. Speaking on Radio 4 on Tuesday, Amanda Berry OBE admitted she was ‘very disappointed’ at the 73rd British Academy Film Awards shortlist’s lack of diversity.
When asked if the 2020 nominations were a ‘more diverse’ list, she said: ‘If I’m being totally honest, no, I’m very disappointed.’ Agreeing the list seemed ‘very white’, she added: ‘I’m going to totally agree with you because that’s how I felt when I first saw the list and this isn’t being disrespectful to anyone who has been nominated because it’s an incredibly strong list this year.
It would have been nice to see Lupita nominated, and it’s laughable that they snubbed J.Lo. But I have to say… this is going to be one of those years where Oscars So White will be a conversation again too. All of the “big films” are about white people and made by white people this year. There’s not a Moonlight or 12 Years a Slave or Get Out this year. Which is a whole other conversation about access and privilege.
Photos courtesy of IMDB.
Margot Robbie TWICE? This year. Man, they really went out of their way to nominate only white actresses, didn’t they?
…and ScarJo – twice as well.
Margot was not in Once Upon A Time…enough to qualify as a lead imo. She also did very little. She was very good in her part by there was not enough of it.
I totally agree @darling. She was in the movie briefly and barely said anything. JLO should have been nominated if for nothing else the physicality of her performance. She was an athlete in that film.
Not one actor or actress from Parasite, the most critically acclaimed film in the last decade. Not. One.
came here just to say this! song kang-ho is one of the best actors out there today. not just best korean actor, but best period. he is absolutely amazing. i’m glad parasite is getting any kind of international attention, because it deserves it, but the entire cast was amazing. and i think song and choi woo-shik (who i’ve seen in so many things for years-it’s such a pleasure to see an actor grow the way he has) were the standouts. but any of the lead and supporting cast could have been nominated, i think. any of the four female actors could have been nominated in the supporting category instead of robbie being nominated twice.
IMO Cynthia Erivo’s omission was even more ridiculous than JLo’s considering Erivo is British! And also only male directors. Aside from Greta Gerwig’s snub, one of the most critically acclaimed films in the UK this past year has been The Souvenir. I’ve seen it on lots of ‘best of’ lists. The director is a woman – Joanna Hogg – and she was shut out too.
Sick of this sh*t
Yup. Plus Daniel Kaluuya is also British, as is Jodie-Turner Smith – both starred in critically acclaimed Queen & Slim. And there was Blue Story – also critically acclaimed – with a wealth of new Black British acting talent as well as a Black British writer/director.
Micheal Ward was nominated for “Blue Story” yesterday, when the BAFTA Rising Star Award nominees were announced by Tom Hiddleston.
Greta Gerwig doesn’t deserve a directing nod.
It’s sad that the female filmmaker that gets the most attention now only got the resources she got (out of this world & unheard of for a first time feature) bc of Noah Baumbach fast-tracking her. She had TONS of known & already famous, established cast, a healthy budget, strong distribution, total covered financing not ever split – and that was her *first* feature. It is *unheard of* for a woman to get the investment in an awards season campaign for a first time feature, even veteran female filmmakers are usually tossed aside. And then a second feature…$40 million budget, guaranteed wide release, GG kinda acting like she’s the star & wants to be front & center when a director is more of a BTS force, and likes it that way.
I see my fellow sisters slave away for years and years. ESPECIALLY WoC. They spill blood sweat & tears while taking the stairs – Gerwig took the elevator bc she is Baumbach’s muse, plain & simple. I am NOT saying she is untalented. But It’s undeniable she’d still be fighting for FINANCING alone – if Baumbach hadn’t taken an interest. Sad but never surprising.
It’s 2020 and I’m not surprised at all. Sad but true.
I agree that it’s a conversation about privileges in business, like why already Oscar winner Jordan Peele was pushed to a April/May premiere with Us, and why Just Mercy with Michael B Jordan barely had any awards campaign, while Marriage story, even having great acting, is everywhere and has writing directing nominations, I don’t even talk about OUATIH and Joker, the last one got the most nominations and it’s King of Comedy plagiarism with DC character included for hype. Some people on facebook (mostly brits because I read comments under Guardian article) already commented “act better” like the issue is only talent, of course it’s only talent, tory voters, we are all equal already as whole humanity.
Margot Robbie is a great actress, but two nominations in one category is too much.
Are the BAFTAs usually so heavy on the American films? (I know Parasite is not American.) And Sam Mendes is British. But it seems like a lot of American actors/actresses. Not sure how typical that is. I don’t really understand how a lot of these award shows actually work, lol.
On a “so white” note though, I just saw that Awkwafina is the first Asian American actress to win a GG for best actress.
It is pretty typical for the BAFTAS to nominate a lot of American films. They have a separate category that’s solely for British films. Some films are nominated in both categories.
Ah okay, thanks!
@BECKS1 yes, they are! Basically all major award shows are heavily influenced by American cinema, which is the one who is commercialized the most and the one who gets more exposure. (Unlike festival where you have to compete for a chance which is why indie and foreign cinema get the tops spots) also, the BAFTA speak English so it’s another point to consider American movies.
Yet, they do have an award exclusively to boring movies: “Best English Film”.
Why is everyone surprised the nominees are those who hobnob with the nominators (and in more way than one). So guess what POC get a pass because they don’t have access to the nominators.
People are still pretending that they don’t understand how white privilege operates in 2020….
@mignionette
THIS. it’s all lip service. always.
I always laugh at the hypocrisy (this isn’t directly related to BAFTAS so white, but there’s a certain parallel on lip service & facades) –
Times Up was created by CAA, an agency very much complicit in sending actresses into the lions den of predators, covering it up, money for silence. They were at risk for being exposed more & lo and behold, Times Up!
White women also need to take a critical look at this list, because they’re only getting nominated for the acting categories if they’re thin, blonde and considered attractive by “mainstream” society. And even in that case, no directing nominations for them (Greta Gerwig).
It looks a bit monotone this year and there certainly are a few things to criticise, but the actresses category for the BAFTAs in the past years have been far from just blonde and skinny.
But I’m talking about this year specifically.
@gome
Little Women was not worth a directing nod..at all. Just bc Gerwig is the most recognizable female director out there doesn’t mean she should get some token automatic nod.
So disappointing, girl didn’t even need to hustle. Got everything once a white male gatekeeper of the director’s chair made her his default inspiration. it led to perks most female filmmakers will never see, ever. Makes me upset thinking of how much harder WoC filmmakers have to work too. Not everybody gets to get a fast pass cuz they are an established filmmaker’s muse.
The fact that JLo is not nominated is a joke and tells you these awards don’t matter. Margot twice? Yeah, she’s a great actress but don’t tell me she’s better in Bombshell than JLo in Hustlers.
I didn’t think she was that great in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, but in any case she didn’t need two roles nominated in the same category.
She wasn’t that great at all. They really could have put JLo in the spot.
Sorry but Marriage Story sucked. It was so pretentious. And of court it’s getting all the prestige nominations. It’s a movie about the overwrought martial struggles experienced by successful, pretty white people. I’m sure it really resonated with all the divorced A listers but I’m just a lowly Millennial spinster so it missed the mark with me.
I’m all for ranting about these terrible nominations – but Marriage Story was actually a surprising omission for both director and best picture…
OMG thank you! It’s not horrible imo but I was expecting something greater based on the reviews. It just left me depressed. I thought Adam was good in it though.
Adam was good but I didn’t Scarjo was that good. I don’t find her to be a credible actress. Even in Jojo rabbit she was meh. It was the young boy who was the star of that film.
I love Margot, but she barely did anything in Once Upon a Time… JLo should’ve gotten that nomination.
Queen and Slim was a better movie than Hustlers, imo.
The film industry is a disgusting business run by disgusting people.
Not surprised. I am in France, it’s about the same all white shit every year. I thought Brits made efforts to make things more inclusive, I was wrong. Europe is really bad. The USA look good in comparaison.
88% of the British population is white so sorry its kind of hard not to have a load of white shit. The next largest minority in the UK is Indian/Pakistani/Bangladeshi – I don’t see them being properly represented at any award show, in any country outside their own, in fact if you didn’t know better you would think Afro Caribbean was the largest minority.
Every year they state disappoint and the need to change. Then following year is the same ole shit. They do not care at all. Next year it will be same thing, all white, all males.
I thought the BAFTAs were ALWAYS pretty White. The British don’t seem to go out of their way to honour their performers of colour. That’s why so many of them hotfoot it to the States to play Americans.
Longtime reader first time commenter only to say that I’m so happy that Jessie Buckley is nominated for Wild Rose. I found her so charming and I really, really enjoyed that film (I laughed, I cried and I wanted to cheer!). I hope she gets nominated for an Oscar though I don’t think that many people have seen it. I haven’t seen any of the other nominated films yet – I have a lot to catch up in before the Oscars.
On another note, thanks to the writers and commenters of this blog for continuing to entertain and educate me.