Richard Dreyfuss says new Oscars diversity regulations make him vomit
Speaking to Margaret Hoover, the actor said the new Oscars rules aimed at addressing inequality make him "vomit".
2015 gave rise to #OscarsSoWhite movement. As a means to address the inequality that many complained about, the Oscars announced a new inclusion rule. The rule states that starting in 2024, films will be required to have a certain percentage of actors or crew from underrepresented racial or ethnic groups to be eligible for the Academy Award for 'Best Picture'.
Speaking about this issue with Margaret Hoover during an interview on Friday on the PBS series, actor Richard Dreyfuss said the new inclusion rules make him "vomit”.
The Academy Award-winning actor slammed the Oscars for their diversity rules, citing that acting is a form of art.
“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 into the latest, most current idea of what morality is,” Dreyfuss said.
"And 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," he added.
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The actor said he doesn't "think that there is a minority or a majority in this country that has to be catered to like that".
“Am I being told that I will never have a chance to play a Black man?” Dreyfuss said.
“Is someone else being told that if they’re not Jewish they shouldn’t play the Merchant of Venice? Are we crazy? Do we not know that art is art?”
He concluded: "This is so patronising. It’s so thoughtless and treating people like children.”
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