David Oyelowo is impressed with this year’s slate of Oscar nominations, but doesn’t think the Academy should pat itself on the back just yet. While promoting his new film, “A United Kingdom,” the actor spoke out about #OscarsSoWhite’s long shadow and the limited opportunities for women directors.
In an interview with USA Today, Oyelowo said, “It would be naïve and very shortsighted to think this is the end of the challenges faced by people of color in relation to the movie industry. The infrastructure that enabled two years of #OscarsSoWhite is still very much in place.” Still, he is ecstatic about Octavia Spencer’s nod for her “Hidden Figures” role. “There’s a disproportionate amount of recognition for [black actors] playing slaves, domestic servants, criminals, sports stars, and musicians,” Oyelowo commented. “We are so much more than that.” The “Selma” actor added that Spencer’s role is “a change.” “I’m looking forward to more of that.”
The Playlist also reported on Oyelowo’s “passion” for inclusivity at the Academy Awards. “I’m encouraged by the fact that it’s not only people in front of the camera, but also behind the camera who have been recognized this year. We have editors, cinematographers, black female producers who have been recognized this year,” he explained.
However, Oyelowo hasn’t forgotten how the awards circuit treats female filmmakers. “Any hesitancy I’m having of truly doing cartwheels about it all is very tied to the fact that we have a really reprehensible record when it comes to female directors,” he said. “The chances of [women directors] being acknowledged at something like the Academy Awards [are] slim to none. And for a long time, for longer than should be the case, it’s been none.”
The actor’s remarks are spot-on. Research from the Women’s Media Center found that women only represent 20 percent of the non-acting Oscar nods this year. Overall, women received just 19 percent of all Academy Award nominations from 2005 to 2016. Only four women have ever been nominated for Best Director: Lina Wertmüller (“Seven Beauties”), Jane Campion (“The Piano”), Sofia Coppola (“Lost in Translation”), and Kathryn Bigelow (“The Hurt Locker”). Bigelow was the first — and only — woman to take home the statuette.
Oyelowo has used his public profile to fight for women and inclusivity in the past. He previously commented, “I find that male directors are more interested in what the film looks like as opposed to what the film is about emotionally,” he opined. “I just want to tell the emotional truth, and I have found that the women directors I’ve worked with — there’s no pussyfooting around it or navigating around it. There’s no playing off talking about emotion as something that’s uncomfortable, and that’s of value when you’re barreling through a shooting day.”
And Oyelowo isn’t just speaking theoretically. He has previously worked with several women directors, including Ava DuVernay (“Selma,” “Middle of Nowhere”), Maris Curran (“Five Nights in Maine”), Cynthia Mort (“Nina”), and Mira Nair (“Queen of Katwe”).
“A United Kingdom” is a love story about Prince Seretse Khama of Botswana (Oyelowo) and Englishwoman Ruth Williams (Rosamund Pike), whose interracial marriage provoked upset in both Botswana and Britain during the 1940s. The film, directed by Amma Asante (“Belle”), opens in the U.S. February 10.
