The Big Short Director, Adam McKay says #OscarsSoWhite controversy is “legitimate” but, didn’t cast many non-white actors in his Oscar nominated movie.
Adam McKay, who co-wrote and directed the Oscar nominated movie The Big Short, did an interview with HuffPost Live Tuesday in which he explained his choice to feature an entirely white and male cast, saying “That’s the truth of Wall Street, we had to do it.”
Adam McKay, who has been doing press for his movie ever since his movie was nominated for five Academy Awards, was asked about the #OscarsSoWhite controversy and he responded by saying:
“I think it’s legitimate. I think it’s a legitimate complaint … We’re supposedly artists, writers, directors, actors, whatever and I think more diversity is important. I think we’ve had stretches where there’s been good diversity, but lately it hasn’t been great. So I think if any group on planet earth should be able to deal with protests like this, it should be filmmakers. So I support it. I thought that there were some really talented people that I would have loved to have seen nominated. I think we’re a group that should always be asking questions like that.
McKay said he firmly believes “more diversity is important,” but he does think several films recognized by the Academy did manage to trigger a social response even though casts were mostly featuring white actors.
“At the same time, I think there were some great movies this year that do challenge entrenched authority and corrupt power, like ‘Spotlight,’ like [‘The Big Short’] with banking,” he said. “So I think there’s some good stuff going on in Hollywood this year that we maybe haven’t seen recently.”
It is important to point out that there are at best three non-white actors in the entire movie and one of the actors in the movie is made fun of because of their race.
The Big Short is based on the non-fiction 2010 book of the same name by Michael Lewis about the financial crisis of 2007–2008, which was triggered by the build-up of the housing market and the credit bubble.
The Big Short stars Christian Bale, Steve Carell, Ryan Gosling, and Brad Pitt. The film is nominated for five Academy Awards, including Best Picture, Best Director, Best Supporting Actor for Bale, and Best Adapted Screenplay.
