Legendary director, writer and producer Reginald Hudlin will be one of the two producers responsible for making the Oscars an extraordinary event. Over the years, the awards ceremony has tried to make strides in the area of diversity but has fallen short of real progress. Hopefully, that will change with Hudlin’s involvement.
Hudlin’s credits include Boomerang, House Party and D’Jango Unchained. Additionally, he served as the president of entertainment for BET and has executive produced the NAACP awards show.
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With the recent re-election of Cheryl Boone Isaacs as Academy president and the legendary filmmaker Spike Lee being rewarded with an honorary Oscar, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences seems to be striving for more diversity. However, the numbers prove otherwise. The voting members of the Academy, who select the nominated artists, are 94 percent white, 77 percent male and have a median age of 62. The Oscars have also struggled with diversity in its nominations. Last year, out of 127 nominees, 118 were white.
Hudlin will join David Hill, a former Fox executive and close confidant to Rupert Murdoch, as producer. Hill also helped oversee American Idol before leaving to start his own production company.
Hudlin will be one of the driving forces in creating more diversity at the Academy Awards. He will likely choose next year’s host for the ceremony as well.
