Online discussion of Oscar snubs focused on outrage over minorities excluded from big categories, according to data from digital marketing company Amobee.
Netflix’s “Beast of No Nation,” which stars Idris Elba as a brutal African warlord, was the movie with the most digital content engagement related to Oscar snubs on Thursday. Elba was also the actor with the most snub-related engagement, according to data captured by the company’s Amobee Brand Intelligence system.
The online discussion around Oscar snubs underscores growing unrest about diversity in Hollywood, with some charging mainstream entertainment’s power structure systemically undermines women and minorities. The Directors Guild of America released a study in September that found women and minority TV directors are disadvantaged at the entry level.
On Friday, Amobee examined what people were seeing, reading and interacting with on more than 600,000 sites, including social networks like Twitter and Facebook, YouTube videos, news websites, blogs and more.
Four of the most spoken-about snubbed movies featured black protagonists. “There’s no question that the audience viewed the exclusion of minorities as a common thread to movies they were disappointed to see not receive more Oscar nominations,” the company said.
After “Beasts of No Nation,” the movies with the most digital content engagement was “Creed,” “Carol,” “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” and “Straight Outta Compton.” All but “Carol” have black stars, while “Carol” focuses on the relationship between two lesbians.
The top three actors most associated with talk of an Oscar snub were black, with Elba followed by Michael B. Jordan from “Creed” and Will Smith from “Concussion.” Amobee noted the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite was used 76,644 times on Twitter on Thursday through 5 p.m. ET.
The biggest snub not involving minority exclusion was Ridley Scott, who was overlooked in the Best Director category for “The Martian,” after winning at the Golden Globes.