Hollywood screenwriters face their own "OscarsSoWhite" drama
The African-American writer was able to create a black teen from a posh private school, a rare victory in an industry that makes scant room for those of color or their perspective.
"There just isn't a lot of diversity within the core of people who are coming up with stories and developing characters," said Darnell Hunt, director of the Ralph J. Bunche Center for African American Studies at the University of California, Los Angeles.
The expanding TV universe has been more agile in adjusting to the demographic change than movies, with ethnic and gender diversity in shows ranging from CW's "Jane the Virgin" to Netflix's "Orange is the New Black," and awards have followed.
The film academy adopted voting changes that may, in the future, prevent the omission of actors such as Idris Alba, who won a SAG award for "Beasts of No Nation," and Michael B. Jordan, overlooked for "Creed," while Sylvester Stallone earned a supporting actor bid for reviving his Rocky character.
[...] Oscar-worthy roles start with writers and directors, said Kenya Barris, the creator and executive producer of ABC's groundbreaking African-American family comedy, "black-ish."
Movies with casts evenly split between white and non-white actors are more profitable, according to a new Bunche Center study that cites "Lucy," the Morgan Freeman-Scarlett Johansson sci-fi drama that grossed $400 million-plus worldwide, as an example.
There he became friends with cast member Aziz Ansari, and the two went on to create and produce "Master of None," the critically applauded Netflix comedy starring Ansari.