Photo: Jon Kopaloff/WireImage
Patty Jenkinsis being blunt about theAcademyshutting out women from this year’s Best Director nominations.
TheWonder Womandirector, 51, shared her thoughts on the subject withVarietyon Saturday at the Charles Finch and Chanel pre-Oscars dinner at the Beverly Hills Hotel’s Polo Lounge in Los Angeles.
“I give up, I give up,” she told the outlet aboutno women nominated for Best Director. “I say that even with all of their push to have diversity. The numbers are just hugely imbalanced of who votes for these things. I sort of just stopped paying attention to it.”
Patty Jenkins and Gal Gadot on the set ofWonder Woman 1984(2020).Clay Enos/ Warner Bros./Courtesy Everett Collection
“It’s still going to take a long ways to go,” added Jenkins. “It’s going to take a lot more to really see truly more diverse awards. I really appreciate the efforts that they’re making but we have a long way to go.”
Female directors shut out of the category whose films were nominated in other categories include Charlotte Wells (Aftersun) and Sarah Polley(Women Talking).Gina Prince-Bythewood’sThe Woman King, Chinonye Chukwu’sTilland Maria Schrader’sShe Saidwere also not recognized.
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DespiteThe Woman King’s lack of recognition from the Academy, Prince-Bythewood maintained that her film was a success, citing the movie’s positive reviews from critics and audiences, as well as “groundbreaking and historic” global box office numbers that show the film will earn $100 million.
“But the Academy made a very loud statement, and for me to stay quiet is to accept that statement,” she toldTHR. “So I agreed to speak up, on behalf of Black women whose work has been dismissed in the past, is dismissed now like Alice Diop and Saint Omer,Chinonye ChukwuandTill— and for those who haven’t even stepped on a set yet.”
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Prince-Bythewood explained to the trade that she does not think it’s fair to sayThe Woman Kingwas “snubbed” because it was shut out entirely from the upcoming awards show, even after it “hit all the so-called markers” of an Oscar-nominated film.
“It’s a reflection of where the Academy stands and the consistent chasm between Black excellence and recognition,” she said. “And, sadly, this is not just an issue in Hollywood but in every industry.”
Meanwhile, Jenkins was set to helmRogue Squadron, a spinoff story about the Rebel Alliance Starfighters from the franchise. It was originally slated for a December 2023 release from Disney but waspulled from the schedulein September,Varietyreported last week. A source told the outlet thatRogue Squadronis no longer in development.
source: people.com
