We’re Dangerously Close to Another #OscarsSoWhite Year

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Few people have noticed yet, but the Oscars could be barreling toward repeating some not-so-great history.

In March, Michael B. Jordan walked onto the Dolby Theatre stage and collected the best actor Oscar for “Sinners,” one of four wins for a film that set the all-time record with 16 nominations. He is the sixth Black man in 98 years to win the prize. Now, eight months later, if the pundits are reading the race correctly, the door his win seemed to open could be swinging shut.

In Gold Derby’s aggregated predictions in late October, three actors of color sat in nomination positions across the four acting categories and not one director of color made the projected five. In the lead races, nine of the 10 projected slots belonged to white performers. Mexican Australian breakout Inde Navarrette was the lone exception.

If that holds through nominations morning on Jan. 21, we’ll be reliving January 2015, when all 20 acting nominees were white and April Reign gave the industry the infamous hashtag it still hasn’t shaken: #OscarsSoWhite. It happened again the following year. After each time, the Academy promised it had learned something and was making changes.

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Here’s what makes this year so maddening. The talent is there. The bench is deep, and it’s full of work that stands up to anything in the predicted fields. What’s missing is the buzz, and the buzz doesn’t build itself.

So let’s talk about who could stop history from repeating.

Start with Zendaya. The 30-year-old is one of the most famous actors on the planet, and she still has zero Oscar nominations. Few actors ever have a year like the one she’s having.

She opened 2026 with A24’s “The Drama,” then turned up in two of the year’s biggest hits, “Spider-Man: Brand New Day” and “The Odyssey.” Now Warner Bros. is moving her to best actress for Chani in “Dune: Part Three,” opening Dec. 18, after positioning her as supporting in the first two films.

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