Everything is ready for the 95th edition of the Oscars 2023 Awards and, as usual, this year is not without controversy, which, on this occasion, revolves around the statuette for best actress.
The Malaysian actress Michelle Yeoh and the Australian Cate Blanchett compete this Sunday for the Oscar for best actress, for Everything at once everywhere and Tár respectively, a category that has been in the spotlight from the first moment.
Aside from the usual snubs and surprises, the biggest mess this year has been the debate surrounding Andrea Riseborough’s unexpected best actress nomination. The Englishwoman was nominated for the drama set in Texas To Leslie to the detriment of black interpreters who were aiming for an Oscar such as Viola Davis or Danielle Deadwyler. Some saw this decision as a reflection of racial bias in the film industry.
Although the Australian Blanchett -who already has two Oscars- has reaped an unstoppable streak since winning the Volpi Cup for her despotic role as conductor, Michelle Yeoh has also prevailed with the Golden Globe in comedy film, the prize Screen Actors Guild and the Spirit. What is clear is that the Oscar for best actress will go to one of them.
However, the fight between Yeoh and Blanchett caused the Malaysian actress to post an article from Vogue magazine on her Instagram account, which she later deleted. In said article, under the title It has been more than two decades since there has been a non-white winner of the Oscar for best actress. Will the situation change in 2023? , where a deep criticism of “systematized racism” by the Academy is made and the reasons why she deserves to win the Oscar Yeoh are pointed out, remembering that Blanchett also already has two statuettes.
“For Yeoh, an Oscar would be life-changing: her name would always be preceded by the phrase ‘Academy Award Winner,’ and should result in her getting more meaty roles, after a decade of being criminally underused in Hollywood. “This is how one of the paragraphs of the controversial article that the actress shared says.
The truth is that only one racialized woman – on that occasion it was Halle Berry – has collected the Oscar for best actress at the ceremony itself. And 21 years have passed since that historic moment.
