Actress Charlotte Rampling says uproar over Oscars diversity is 'racist to whites'

Charlotte Rampling.
(Image credit: Clemens Bilan/Stringer/Getty Images)

Jada Pinkett Smith, Will Smith, Spike Lee, and Mark Ruffalo are among a growing number of voices skewering the 2016 Oscars for the flagrant lack of racially diverse nominees. However, not everyone feels the same way: Charlotte Rampling, who is nominated for Best Actress for her role in 45 Years, says "Perhaps the black actors did not deserve to make the final list."

Going even further, Rampling, 69, told French Radio network Europe 1 on Friday that she saw the quarrel over diversity as being "racist to whites."

"Why classify people? These days everyone is more or less accepted... People will always say: 'Him, he's less handsome'; 'Him, he's too black'; 'He is too white'... Someone will always be saying 'You are too' [this or that]... But do we have to take from this that there should be lots of minorities everywhere?" Rampling said.

The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

According to The Guardian, the interviewer went on to explain that black people in the film industry feel like minorities, to which Rampling replied, "No comment."

Explore More
Jeva Lange

Jeva Lange was the executive editor at TheWeek.com. She formerly served as The Week's deputy editor and culture critic. She is also a contributor to Screen Slate, and her writing has appeared in The New York Daily News, The Awl, Vice, and Gothamist, among other publications. Jeva lives in New York City. Follow her on Twitter.