Academy Award winner Richard Dreyfuss says the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences' new diversity and inclusion requirements for an Oscar nomination make him "vomit."
When asked by PBS in an interview published Friday, what the Jaws star "thinks of these new inclusion standards for films," Dreyfuss responded, "They make me vomit."
"Why," host Margaret Hoover pressed.
"Because this is an art form," Dreyfuss added. "It's also a form of commerce, and it makes money. But it's an art. And no one should be telling me as an artist that I have to give in to the latest, most current idea of what morality is."
In order to be nominated for Best Picture at the 2024 Academy Awards, a film must meet two out of the four diversity "standards." The four standards include on-screen representation, creative leadership, internships or entry-level positions, and a diverse marketing team; criteria for what consists as diversity in such positions ranges from women to a member of a racial or ethnic group, a person identifying as someone from the "LGBTQ+" community, or someone who possesses a cognitive or physical disability.
Dreyfuss goes on to ask, "What are we risking? Are we really risking hurting people's feelings? You can't legislate that. And — you have to let life be life. And I'm sorry, I don't think that there is a minority or a majority in the country that has to be catered to like that."
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