London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 22, 2026

#BAFTAsSoWhite trending as awards controversy rears its head again

#BAFTAsSoWhite trending as awards controversy rears its head again

The nominees for this year’s BAFTA awards have one thing in common, they’re all white. Commenters have taken to Twitter to complain, under the #BAFTAsSoWhite hashtag.

The British Academy of Film and Television Arts unveiled its 2020 nominations on Tuesday, creating a storm of controversy in the process. All of the 18 stars tipped for best actor, actress, supporting actor, and supporting actress, are caucasian. Two actresses, Margot Robbie and Scarlett Johansson, were nominated twice.


Film fans took to Twitter to vent. “Things need to change,” screenwriter Sarah Dollard wrote. “Membership demographics, voting procedure, the levelling of the playing field re screenings & screeners. This can’t happen again.”




Tuesday’s controversy is not the first time a hashtag campaign has been deployed to complain about the supposed lack of diversity in the entertainment industry. The 2015, 2016, and 2017 BAFTAs were also panned for excluding minority actors and actresses. Across the Atlantic, the #OscarsSoWhite campaign kicked off in 2016 too, with even President Barack Obama weighing in, asking Hollywood if people of all races were “getting a fair shot.”

As for whether the movies themselves were any good, that much was lost in the discussion. Commenters on Twitter insisted that actors Lupita Nyong’o, Jennifer Lopez, Awkwafina, and Cynthia Erivo put in performances worthy of an award. Some cynical commenters disagreed, however, and argued“if you ain’t good enough you don’t deserve a nomination.”

BAFTA’s awards director Emma Baehr addressed the controversy on Tuesday, telling the Hollywood Reporter that her organization would be happy to nominate non-white actors and actresses, if enough films featuring them were submitted for review.

“We’d have liked to have seen more diversity in the nominations, it does continue to be an industry-wide issue,” she said. “I think more films need to be made, and entered, giving people a chance to see them. We’d absolutely like to see more diversity, but I also don’t want to take away from those celebrating today.”

In addition to the race controversy, fans were outraged at BAFTA’s decision to nominate only men in its ‘Best Director’ category, with many complaining that ‘Little Women’ director Greta Gerwig deserved a nomination. Gerwig was also snubbed at the recent Golden Globes, which also featured an all-male shortlist of directors.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
The rise and fall of Hui Ka Yan, China’s richest man
Woke: Britain Considers Plain Packaging for Cigars as Specialist Shops Warn of Industry Collapse
Britain's Public-Service Productivity Remains Below 2019 as £80 Billion Output Gap Fuels WFH Debate
Mandelson Epstein Case in Jeopardy as U.S. Files Stay Out of Reach
Prince Harry and Six Others Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million After High Court Defeat
Petrol Bombs Set Luxury Cars Alight Outside Birmingham Wedding as Police Hunt Three Men
Bitcoin Surges Toward $80,000 as Short Squeeze and ETF Inflows Ignite Crypto Rally
Prince Harry and Co-Claimants Ordered to Pay £9.5 Million Toward Daily Mail Publisher’s Legal Costs
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Reportedly Plan Return to Britain With Their Children
UK Court Ruling Threatens Deportation Plans for Potential Trafficking Victims to Albania
Kemi Badenoch Presses UK Government for Decisions on Rosebank and Jackdaw Oil Fields
UK Foreign Affairs Committee Chair Calls for Ban on Goods from Occupied West Bank
Andy Burnham Government to Place Civil Servants Directly in English Mayoral Offices
Met Office Warns Major El Niño Could Bring Stormier, Wetter Autumn to UK
UK Economy Gains Unexpected Momentum Ahead of Andy Burnham Government’s First Budget
Twenty-Nine US States Take Meta to Trial Over Alleged Child Addiction on Instagram and Facebook
Former Scottish National Party Executive Peter Murrell Jailed for Five Years Over £400,000 Embezzlement
Moderna and Merck's Personalized Cancer Vaccine Succeeds in Historic Late-Stage Melanoma Trial
Prince Harry and Meghan to Move Back to Britain With Their Children
England and Wales Have Fewer Than 1,800 Prison Places Left for Men
Royal Navy to Accelerate DragonFire Laser Deployment Against Growing Drone Threat
Northern Ireland Approves Five Hundred Million Pound Belfast Harbour Expansion
Great British Railways Takes Full Control of Avanti West Coast as Rail Nationalisation Reaches Final Stage
UK AI Safety Institute Calls for Mandatory Security Audits of Advanced AI Models
Scotland Secures Three Billion Pounds for Floating Offshore Wind Hub in Aberdeen
Government Overrides Local Councils to Approve Green Belt Housing Across Southern England
UK and EU Move Toward Mutual Recognition of Food Standards to Ease Cross-Channel Trade
Government Plans Multibillion-Pound Private Healthcare Expansion to Cut NHS Surgical Backlogs
Bank of England Signals Faster Rate Cuts as Inflation Falls Below the Two Percent Target
Suspected People Smuggler Arrested After Investigation Identified Him
Children's Doctors Warn That Vaping Can Lead Young People to Smoking
Hundreds of Thousands of Students Receive GCSE and Vocational Results Across England, Wales and Northern Ireland
Here Is What Can Never Happen in Your Country: Taiwan Is Giving Money to All Its People Because It Collected Too Much Tax
UK Inflation Rises to 2.9% as Energy Bills Jump
UK Issues New Conduct Guide for Asylum Seekers on Consent and Respect
Moderna Shares Surge After Positive Personalized Skin Cancer Trial Results
UK Markets Watch US National Debt Surpass Forty Trillion Dollars
UK Broadcasters Urge Government to Invest in Digital Participation and Broadband
CVC Capital Partners and Standard Life Launch Two Billion Pound Pension Risk Transfer Venture
UK Private Sector Productivity Growth Accelerates in Second Quarter
UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband Condemns Israeli E1 Settlement Tender
UK Watchdog Investigates Trainline, Virgin Atlantic and RED Driving School Over Hidden Fees
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle Plan Move to Private Home Outside London
UK Retail Sentiment Improves as Summer Spending Boosts Consumer Confidence
UK Aid Cuts Draw Warnings From Charities Over Humanitarian Consequences
UK Financial Conduct Authority Issues Guidance for Motor Finance Redress Scheme
UK Met Office Launches Aviation Programme to Reduce Climate Impact of Persistent Contrails
Former UK Civil Service Chief Received Record 500,000 Pound Severance Payment
West Midlands to Bring Bus Network Under Public Franchising Model
UK Government Drops Plan to Relax Affordable Housing Requirements After Backlash
×