Kirstie Alley hits out at the Oscars over their new rules for Best Picture

Kirstie Alley has hit out at the Academy Awards after they announced that movies will have to meet strict new diversity targets to be eligible to win from 2024.

The Oscars shake-up means films will have to hire more cast and crew from black, female, LGBT or disabled groups or address themes that affect those communities. 

Taking to Twitter on Wednesday after the news broke, Kirstie, 69, lashed out at the new requirements and called it a ‘disgrace’ to artists. 

Hitting out: Kirstie Alley has hit out at the Academy Awards after they announced that movies will have to meet strict new diversity targets to be eligible to win from 2024 (pictured in 2018) 

The Cheers star penned in a furious rant: ‘This is a disgrace to artists everywhere…can you imagine telling Picasso what had to be in his f**king paintings. 

‘You people have lost your minds. Control artists, control individual thought .. OSCAR ORWELL.’ 

She added: ‘I’ve been in the motion picture Academy for 40 years. The Academy celebrates freedom of UNBRIDLED artistry expressed through movies. 

‘The new RULES to qualify for ”best picture” are dictatorial .. anti-artist..Hollywood you’re swinging so far left you’re bumping into your own a*s.’ 

Diversity: The Oscars shake-up means films will have to hire more cast and crew from black, female, LGBT or disabled groups or address themes that affect those communities

Diversity: The Oscars shake-up means films will have to hire more cast and crew from black, female, LGBT or disabled groups or address themes that affect those communities

'Disgrace!': Taking to Twitter on Wednesday after the news broke, Kirstie, 69, lashed out at the new requirements and called it a 'disgrace' to artists

‘Disgrace!’: Taking to Twitter on Wednesday after the news broke, Kirstie, 69, lashed out at the new requirements and called it a ‘disgrace’ to artists

Kirstie signed off her rant with: ‘Diversity and inclusion should be taught, taught so well and so naturally and genuinely that it becomes second nature to our children.’

Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman actor, Dean Cain, also lashed out at the new requirements.

The Supergirl star, 54, penned: ‘How about we judge on this criteria– which film was the BEST PICTURE? (also, when do we start handing out participation Oscars?)’

Dean also re-tweeted Conservative and Oscar-nominated actor James Woods, 73, who had shared an article about the new rules and simply wrote ‘madness’. 

The Cheers star penned in a furious rant: 'This is a disgrace to artists everywhere...can you imagine telling Picasso what had to be in his f**king paintings.' (pictured with Cheers co-star Ted Danson in 1983)

The Cheers star penned in a furious rant: ‘This is a disgrace to artists everywhere…can you imagine telling Picasso what had to be in his f**king paintings.’ (pictured with Cheers co-star Ted Danson in 1983) 

Kirstie signed off her rant with: 'Diversity and inclusion should be taught, taught so well and so naturally and genuinely that it becomes second nature to our children.'

Kirstie signed off her rant with: ‘Diversity and inclusion should be taught, taught so well and so naturally and genuinely that it becomes second nature to our children.’

The new requirements come after months of anti-racism protests in the US and years of pressure from activists who have called for a boycott of the glitzy event.

Academy bosses say the rules are intended to ‘better reflect the diversity of the movie-going audience’, but critics last night raged at ‘woke Hollywood’ for turning the Oscars into a ‘weapon against anyone who disagreed with their politics’.

Actor Nick Searcy was among those to criticise the new rules after they were announced on Tuesday.

He wrote: ‘The Oscars used to be, just like the movies, something we all shared. 

Lashing out: Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman actor, Dean Cain, also lashed out at the new requirements (pictured in 2019)

Way back when: The actor pictured in 1995 show still

Lashing out: Lois & Clark: The New Adventures of Superman actor, Dean Cain, also lashed out at the new requirements (pictured in 2019, left, and in 1995 show still, right) 

The Supergirl star, 54, penned: 'How about we judge on this criteria-- which film was the BEST PICTURE? (also, when do we start handing out participation Oscars?)'

The Supergirl star, 54, penned: ‘How about we judge on this criteria– which film was the BEST PICTURE? (also, when do we start handing out participation Oscars?)’

Pictured: James Woods, 72

Anger: Dean also re-tweeted Conservative and Oscar-nominated actor James Woods, 73, (pictured in 2017) who had shared an article about the new rules and simply wrote ‘madness’  

‘Woke Hollywood turned it all into a weapon they could use against anyone who disagreed with their politics. This is how Hollywood destroyed itself, like the NBA, NFL and MLB just did.’ 

Hollywood’s new diversity rules explained 

To be eligible for Best Picture, films must meet any TWO of the following FOUR criteria. 

1. ON-SCREEN REPRESENTATION

This standard can be met by fulfilling any ONE of these:

– Lead actor or significant supporting actor from an ethnic minority group

– At least 30 per cent of smaller roles are played by women, LGBT people, disabled people or ethnic minorities 

–  The main storyline is centered on an under-represented group

2. CREATIVE LEADERSHIP

This standard can be met by fulfilling any ONE of these: 

– At least two senior creative posts, such as casting director, make-up artist or producer, are from an under-represented group including women

– At least six smaller roles in the crew are filled by ethnic minorities

– At least 30 per cent of the film’s total crew is from an under-represented group 

3. INDUSTRY ACCESS

This standard can be met by fulfilling BOTH of these: 

– Studios and distributors must have paid interns or apprentices who are women or come from minority groups

– Training opportunities must be offered to under-represented groups in production, distribution and financing

4. AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT 

This standard can be met by fulfilling this ONE requirement:

– Multiple senior executives in publicity, marketing and distribution are women or minority groups 

Awards other than Best Picture will continue with their previous eligibility requirements. 

The rules will take effect from the 96th Academy Awards in 2025.  

Film blogger Sasha Stone said: ‘If the Academy inclusion mandate makes marginalised people feel they have a better chance getting employed I think that’s a success. 

‘But I don’t like that productions will be disqualified if they don’t meet the demands. Just not the purpose of the Oscars.’

Adam Liaw, a TV presenter, described the new rules as ‘arbitrary if well-meaning requirements’ which were ‘not a complete or well-considered solution’ without addressing the lack of diversity in the Academy itself.

Comedian Tim Young said: ‘So minority filmmakers will be left wondering if their movie was actually good or the Academy simply had a box to check. Either way, I will continue to not watch.’ 

However, others said the requirements – which only apply to the Best Picture award – were not too demanding for Oscar hopefuls. 

Movie producer Franklin Leonard suggested that ‘probably somewhere between 95-100 per cent of films that would have even been considered for an Oscar have nothing to worry about’. 

Those that do could ‘solve that problem with a comparatively extremely low resource expenditure’ to boost diversity, he said. 

Awards season columnist Kyle Buchanan said that many movies might ‘sail through’ the tests because of female representation in costume design, hair and make-up and publicity, meaning that the on-screen rules would have little effect. 

Films only have to meet two of the four criteria designed to improve hiring practices and representation on and off screen. 

‘Here’s the thing… almost every film would still be nominated under the new guidelines,’ he said.  

Film writer Josh Spiegel said: ‘Maybe the problem with the Oscar eligibility rules is that the bar seems to be set at ground level?’.  

The initiatives will go into effect with films released in the year 2024, which will be recognised at the 96th Oscars in 2025.

Films vying for Best Picture in 2022 and 2023 will be required to fill out a confidential Academy Inclusion Standards form, though meeting inclusion thresholds will not be required for Best Picture eligibility until 2024.  

The guidelines were developed by Academy governors DeVon Franklin and Jim Gianopulos, who lead a task force to develop the standards.

The standards were inspired by British Film Institute (BFI) Diversity Standards, which determine funding for some films in the UK and eligibility in some categories of the British Academy of Film and Television (BAFTA) Awards. 

Guidelines: The guidelines were developed by Academy governors DeVon Franklin and Jim Gianopulos, who lead a task force to develop the standards

Guidelines: The guidelines were developed by Academy governors DeVon Franklin and Jim Gianopulos, who lead a task force to develop the standards

‘The aperture must widen to reflect our diverse global population in both the creation of motion pictures and in the audiences who connect with them,’ said Academy President David Rubin and Academy CEO Dawn Hudson in a statement. 

‘The Academy is committed to playing a vital role in helping make this a reality,’ they continued.

‘We believe these inclusion standards will be a catalyst for long-lasting, essential change in our industry,’ the statement concluded. 

Committed: 'The Academy is committed to playing a vital role in helping make this a reality,' they continued

Committed: ‘The Academy is committed to playing a vital role in helping make this a reality,’ they continued

Starting in 2024, films will need to meet at least two of four new standards to qualify for Best Picture.

The first standard focuses on ‘on-screen representation, themes and narratives,’ with a film required to meet at least one of three criteria to achieve this standard.

The first criteria is that a film must have at least one lead or significant supporting actor’ from an underrepresented group including Asian, Hispanic/Latinx, Black/African American, Indigenous/Native American/Alaskan Native, Middle Eastern/North African Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander or Other underrepresented race or ethnicity. 

New standards: Starting in 2024, films will need to meet at least two of four new standards to qualify for Best Picture (Matthew McConaughey pictured in 2014)

New standards: Starting in 2024, films will need to meet at least two of four new standards to qualify for Best Picture (Matthew McConaughey pictured in 2014) 

If the film is an ensemble, there must be at least 30 per cent of all actors in secondary and more minor roles who are either women, from a racial or ethnic group, from the LGBTQ+ community or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The third criteria revolves around the story, which must revolve around women, from a racial or ethnic group, from the LGBTQ+ community or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing to qualify for this criteria.

If any one of those criteria are met, a film achieves the first standard, with the second focusing on ‘creative leadership and project team.’ 

To achieve the second standard, a film must meet at least one of the three criteria below.

The first says that a film must have at least two creative leaders or department heads in the following roles – Casting Director, Cinematographer, Composer, Costume Designer, Director, Editor, Hairstylist, Makeup Artist, Producer, Production Designer, Set Decorator, Sound, VFX Supervisor and Writer.  

They must be either women, from a racial or ethnic group, from the LGBTQ+ community or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Of those two positions, at least one must be from the following groups: Asian, Hispanic/Latinx, Black/African American, Indigenous/Native American/Alaskan Native, Middle Eastern/North African Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander or Other underrepresented race or ethnicity. 

The second sub-criteria states that at least six other crew members/technical team members must be from an underrepresented group, including positions such as First AD, Gaffer, Script Supervisor.  

Criteria: To achieve the second standard, a film must meet at least one of the three criteria below (Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara pictured in February)

Criteria: To achieve the second standard, a film must meet at least one of the three criteria below (Joaquin Phoenix and Rooney Mara pictured in February) 

The third criteria states that the entire crew must be comprised of over 30% of those from underrepresented groups such as women, from a racial or ethnic group, from the LGBTQ+ community or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The third overarching standard focuses on Industry Access and Opportunities, with two criteria, both of which that must be met. 

The first criteria is that a film’s studio or production company must have paid interns who are from the following groups: women, from a racial or ethnic group, from the LGBTQ+ community or people with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Major studios are required to have, ‘substantive, ongoing paid apprenticeships/internships inclusive of underrepresented groups (must also include racial or ethnic groups).

This includes in most of the following departments: production/development, physical production, post-production, music, VFX, acquisitions, business affairs, distribution, marketing and publicity.’

Mini-major and/or independent companies/studios must have, ‘a minimum of two apprentices/interns from the above underrepresented groups (at least one from an underrepresented racial or ethnic group) in at least one of the following as listed above.   

The second criteria states that a film company must offer, ‘training and/or work opportunities for below-the-line skill development to people from the following underrepresented groups: Women, Racial or ethnic group,LGBTQ+, People with cognitive or physical disabilities, or who are deaf or hard of hearing.

The fourth and final standard relates to Audience Development, which states that the studio or production company must have ‘multiple in-house senior executives’ from underrepresented groups on their publicity and marketing teams. 

The Academy added that films in the speciality feature categories (Animated Feature Film, Documentary Feature, International Feature Film), ‘will be addressed separately.’  

Crew: The second criteria states that at least six other crew members/technical team members must be from an underrepresented group, including positions such as First AD, Gaffer and Script Supervisor (Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper pictured in 2019)

Crew: The second criteria states that at least six other crew members/technical team members must be from an underrepresented group, including positions such as First AD, Gaffer and Script Supervisor (Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper pictured in 2019) 

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