Following 2015 and 2016's #OscarsSoWhite backlash, the 89th Academy Award nominations are in and they are a lot less white.
4 black actresses, 2 black actors, 1 black DP, 2 black screenwriters, 1 black editor, 4 black documentarians & 1 bl… https://t.co/pKeYivukB8
And the internet has taken notice.
HIDDEN FIGURES. FENCES. MOONLIGHT. 13TH. OJ MADE IN AMERICA. VIOLA. RUTH. MAHERSHALA. AVA. OCTAVIA. NAOMIE. BARRY. DENZEL.👏🏾🙌🏾✊🏾 #OscarNoms
The 2017 nominations have brought forth a lot of firsts, including in the Best Supporting Actress category where three out of the five actresses nominated are black...
Wow 3 Black women are nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category. #Oscars #OscarNoms
Viola Davis (Fences), Octavia Spencer (Hidden Figures), and Naomie Harris (Moonlight) each received a nomination. (The other nominees are Michelle Williams for Manchester by the Sea and Nicole Kidman for Lion.)
A feat that many felt was rightfully earned by each actress...
Three black women up for best supporting actress. Not shocked. All were fantastic. But this is good. #OscarNoms
So much so, it's going to be a tough category to call.
Naomie gave us "Who is you Chiron" and shot her part in 3 days. But Viola's snot! And Octavia's "that would be the supervisor" #goodprobs
Davis's nod also made her the most Oscar-nominated black actress in history, a slay that didn't go without recognition on Twitter.
Congratulations to Viola Davis, who has become the first black actress in history to score 3 Oscar nominations.… https://t.co/W0nXaXCmbv
Another slay that didn't go without recognition? This fun fact about Harris' role in Moonlight.
Remember: Naomie Harris filmed her MOONLIGHT role in *three* days. There are no small roles.
Denzel Washington, Ruth Negga, and Mahershala Ali are also nominated for Best Actor, Best Actress, and Best Supporting Actor, respectively, making this year the first time each performance category includes a black nominee.
Mahershala Ali should win it all. Dude is great. #OscarNoms
Ruth Negga has a Best Actress nomination 18 months after leaving a supporting role on Agents of SHIELD. 👌
To the folks who made history today (Marshela, Ruth, Viola, Denzel, Octavia, Barry, Bradford, Naomi, Ava, Raoul + more) congrats & thank u!
The Academy made another statement by nominating three black films for Best Picture this year.
Y'all - A MOVIE ABOUT REAL LIFE BLACK WOMEN GENIUSES GOT A BEST PICTURE NOM. #OSCARS @HiddenFigures #HIDDENFIGURES
Moonlight, Hidden Figures, and Fences each received a nod in the Academy's biggest category. (The other nominees are Arrival, Hacksaw Ridge, Hell or High Water, La La Land, Lion, and Manchester by the Sea.)
Congratulations to #Moonlight on a well-deserved nomination. This should be a signal to filmmakers to tell more diverse stories. #Oscars
Some couldn't help but joke about the kind of confusion all that diversity may cause leading up the award show.
"Do Fences Remain Hidden in the Moonlight?" nominated for Best Picture
Other historic nods include three black documentaries receiving nominations...
Wow. “O.J.: Made in America” “13th” and “I Am Not Your Negro” all nominated for Best Documentary. Stacked category. #OscarNoms
Three black screenwriters receiving nominations for the first time...
3 black screenwriters have earned Oscar noms for the first time ever in same year. Barry Jenkins, Tarell McCraney & the late August Wilson
August Wilson (Fences); Barry Jenkins and Tarell Alvin McCraney (Hidden Figures).
Arrival's Bradford Young becoming the first African-American cinematographer ever nominated...
Remi Adefarasin was 1st black (British) DP to be Oscar nominated #Elizabeth but Bradford Young is 1st African American #Arrival #OscarNoms
And Joi McMillon becoming the first black woman ever nominated in the Best Editing category.
HISTORY: Joi McMillon is the first black woman to be nominated for best editing award (along with Nat Sanders), for @moonlightmov. #Oscars
In the midst of celebrating all these firsts, many made a point to note that the road to truly diverse representation in Hollywood is still long.
Let's just remember that one year of diverse films doesn't take away the need of #OscarsSoWhite and the discussions we are having.
Because, as #OscarSoWhite creator @ReignofApril pointed out, this is only one year and there are other minority races that continue to be left out.
Incorrect. One year of films reflecting the Black experience doesn't make up for 80 yrs of underrepresentation of A… https://t.co/mxF8G8Anc8
For example, Dev Patel is only the third Indian actor to ever be nominated for an Oscar. The THIRD. EVER.
I hate to spoil the fun, but can you imagine knowing who the the third white person to ever be nominated for an Osc… https://t.co/4UM4hTjme8
There is only one Asian nominee besides Patel: The Salesman from Iranian director Asghar Farhadi is up for Best Foreign Language Film. It's the first Iranian film nominated in the category.
And Lin-Manuel Miranda is one of the only two Latinx nominees.
As much as I love love LOVE all the black artists nominated, I'm hoping the industry can keep growing & include Latinx & Asian artists too
Miranda is nominated for Best Original Song for "How Far I'll Go" from Moana, and Rodrigo Prieto is up for Best Cinematography for Silence.
And there were still some black snubs.
Taraji should have gotten a best actress nom for her bathroom monologue in #HiddenFigures alone. #OscarNoms
But this year's nominations have definitely given people a more optimistic view of the future of inclusion in Hollywood.
@ReignOfApril s/o to you for starting the conversation that led to this change #OscarNoms
"Things are changing because our voices are strongest together."
I see y'all and I appreciate the support so much. Things are changing because our voices are strongest together. #OscarsSoWhite #OscarNoms