BAFTA has handed a setback to nonbinary performers by requiring awards nominees to choose between competing as ‘actors’ or ‘actresses’, following a two-year debate on the complex issue of ‘gendered’ acting categories.
The announcement has placed non-binary performers, such as Emma Corrin, Emma D’Arcy, and Bella Ramsey, in a precarious position.
Film producers are required to “confirm the gender/gender identity of each candidate for nomination,” according to revised guidelines that were released last week.
The entrant is responsible for selecting the category into which they will join, according to a source. BAFTA disclosed that they were conducting “proactive and thoughtful consultation” regarding gendered acting categories and were consulting with “sector peers,
industry stakeholders, and experts” in response to the 2022 decision by their music counterparts, the Brit Awards, to adopt a gender-neutral approach.
