BAFTA!? -ALL-WHITE NOMINEES?- BASHED

LIKES of Antonio Banderas, Awkwafina, Jamie Foxx were not taken into consideration. Backlash to 2020 BAFTA awards came quickly after nominations were announced on Jan 7, when actors of color were completely left out.

While megastar Jennifer Lopez has been a fixture in the supporting actress race all awards season, she failed to pick up a nomination for Hustlers at the BAFTAs, who instead nominated Australian actor Margot Robbie twice in the category, reported People.

Other actors of color that have been omitted are widespread. British actor Cynthia Erivo for Hamlet  was noticeably left out, as well as Asian American star Awkwafina for The Farewell, Kenyan-Mexican actor Lupita Nyong'o for US, Spanish actor Antonio Banderas for Pain and Glory, African-American mega-star Eddie Murphy for Dolemite is My Name, and Jamie Foxx for Just Mercy.

The British Academy Film Awards nominating committee addressed the backlash shortly after the nominations were announced.
''We'd have liked to have seen more diversity in the nominations, it does continue to be industry-wide issue,'' BAFTA's director of awards, Emma Baehr, told The Hollywood Reporter following the nominations

Lopez, who is of Purto Rican descent, had been gaining steam for her performance in Hustlers thanks to a few high-profile nominations, including Golden Globe, SAG and Independent Spirit Awards nods.

Instead, the British Academy Film Awards nominated Globe category winner Laura Dern, Little Women's Florence Pugh and Joe Rabbit's Scarlett Johansson for the other three spots.

The nominations were quickly slammed on social media, with fans and critics alike taking the issue with the lack of diversity and pointing to the academy's long history of actors of color failing to be nominated.

''BAFTA ha never nominated Denzel Washington. For anything! Ever! So that tells you something that their show continues to make clear after year,'' New York Times journalist Kyle Buchanan tweeted.

''An all-white slate of acting nominees, in this of all years, BAFTA, this is not good enough,'' critic Guy Lodge echoed.

Another fan wrote, ''BAFTA can give double nominations for Margot and Scarlett but nothing for Lupita, Awkwafina, Zhao Shuzhen, Cynthia Erivo, parasite cast or Greta Gerwig with an all-male director nominees, What a joke.''

Overall, Joaquin Phoenix's Joker came away on top with 11 nominations, while Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and The Irishman tied for second with 10 nods.

The 2020 BAFTA Awards will take place at the Royal Albert Hall in London on February 2.

The World Students Society thanks, News Desk. The Express Tribune.