Despite the Golden Globes’ attempt to quell criticism for its lack of diversity, San Antonio Congressman Joaquin Castro blasted Sunday night’s awards show for its dearth of Latino representation.
“Latinos are almost completely missing at the @goldenglobes—it’s unsurprising and unacceptable,” tweeted Castro, a Democrat who until recently chaired the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. “The film industry must address the pernicious lack of opportunity and representation of Latino Americans. The stories that Hollywood tells affect how entire communities are perceived.”
By a Newsweek tally, just three Latinos were among the nominees in this year’s Golden Globes. Only one of those actually bagged an award.
Anya Taylor-Joy, who’s of British-Argentine descent, won the award for Best Actress in a Miniseries or Motion Picture Made for Television for playing a chess prodigy in the Queen’s Gambit. She was also nominated for Best Actress in a Motion Picture Comedy or Musical for her starring role in Emma.
Lin-Manuel Miranda, who’s of Puerto Rican heritage, was nominated for Best Actor in a Motion Picture Musical or Comedy for his titular role in the film version of Broadway hit Hamilton. He lost to Borat Subsequent Moviefilm‘s Sacha Baron Cohen, however.
Guatemalan director Jayro Bustamante’s horror movie La Llorona garnered a nomination for Best Foreign Language Film but lost to Minari, a Korean-language film lensed by an American-born director of South Korean ancestry.
This isn’t the first time Castro has called for more Latino inclusion in the movies. Last August, the congressman penned a guest column in show-biz trade publication Variety asking Hollywood to improve its diversity and avoid bigoted depictions of Latino people.
“I bet most studio executives are progressives, yet the industry is regressive,” Castro wrote. “Hollywood looks like an America of yesteryear. You can draw a clear line from the pervasive lack of positive Latino representation on-screen to the rise in hate crimes against our communities…”
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This article appears in Feb 24 – Mar 9, 2021.
