LAS VEGAS (KTNV) — In 2015 social media exploded with the hashtag "Oscars so white."
Many demanded more diversity in award shows and in 2021 progress is being made.
Some critics say this is the most diverse Oscars in history while others say there is still more work to do.
Nate Bynum, actor and professor of theater at UNLV, says that the social movement of 2015 rewrote a new narrative for minorities in Hollywood.
"Change is happening but we still have a long way to go," Bynum said.
Torrey Russell, founder of Broadway in the H.O.O.D., says the lack of diversity at the 2015 and 2016 Academy Awards was the turning point minorities needed to create change.
In recent years, the Academy announced a new representation and inclusion standard for the Oscars, designed and encouraged to reflect diversity on screen and behind the scenes.
"Diversity matters and representation matters. This is a start," Russell said.
