Idris Elba wins two Screen Actors Guild Awards: Pokes fun at Oscar diversity row
He took home awards for Luther and Beasts of No Nation
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Your support makes all the difference.This year’s Screen Actors Guild (SAG) Awards were cause for much celebration. Leonardo DiCaprio won Outstanding Performance by a Male Actor, taking him one step closer to an Oscar, while Idris Elba took home the award for best supporting actor and lead actor in a TV series.
Elba’s wins caused quite a stir among 'award season' followers, with many wondering why the actor is not also up for an Oscar in the same category for Beasts of No Nation.
This, along with many other factors, is one of the debates at the centre of the #OscarsSoWhite controversy, a discussion that has centred on the lack of diversity among Oscar nominees.
While presenting an award at the SAGs, Elba managed to poke fun at the dabate, saying "Welcome to diverse TV" on stage to much applause from the audience.
Along with supporting actor for Beasts, Elba took home lead actor in a TV series for his brilliant fourth turn as the titular character in Luther.
Elba wasn’t the only black actor to win big on the night: Viola Davis, Uzo Aduba and Queen Latifah all picked up awards for their roles on the big and small screen.
In direct contrast, not a single non-white actor or actress was nominated for an Oscar for the second consecutive year, leading to many boycotts from the likes of Will Smith and Spike Lee.
Academy president Cheryl Boone Isaacs responded to diversity criticism by insisting that she was “both heartbroken and frustrated about the lack of inclusion”.
She has promised “big changes” as the Academy plans to “take dramatic steps to alter the makeup of its membership”.
The Oscars takes place on Sunday 28 February.
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