George Clooney Speaks Out on Oscars Diversity: ‘We Are Moving in the Wrong Direction’

George Clooney weighed in on the controversy regarding the lack of diversity among this year’s Oscar nominees by saying “we are moving in the wrong direction.”

In an interview with Variety, the Oscar winner says part of the problem is Hollywood’s poor track record with hiring minorities.

“I don’t think it’s a problem of who you’re picking as much as it is: How many options are available to minorities in film, particularly in quality films?” he said. “I think we have a lot of points we need to come to terms with. I find it amazing that we’re an industry that in the 1930s, most of our leads were women. And now a woman over 40 has a very difficult time being a lead in a movie. We’re seeing some movement. Jennifer Lawrence and Patricia Arquette have made the loud pronouncement about wage disparity, have put a stamp on the idea that we got to pay attention. But we should have been paying attention long before this. I think that African-Americans have a real fair point that the industry isn’t representing them well enough. I think that’s absolutely true.”

Clooney also reflected on how the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences acknowledged the work of African-American actors in previous years. “Let’s look back at some of the nominees,” he said. “I think around 2004, certainly there were black nominees — like Don Cheadle, Morgan Freeman. And all of a sudden, you feel like we’re moving in the wrong direction. There were nominations left off the table. There were four films this year … Creed could have gotten nominations. Concussion could have gotten Will Smith a nomination; Idris Elba could have been nominated for Beasts of No Nation and Straight Outta Compton could have been nominated. And certainly last year, with Selma director Ava DuVernay. I think that it’s just ridiculous not to nominate her.”

“But honestly, there should be more opportunity than that,” he continued. “There should be 20 or 30 or 40 films of the quality that people would consider for the Oscars. By the way, we’re talking about African Americans. For Hispanics, it’s even worse. We need to get better at this. We used to be better at it.”

In the week since the Oscar nominations were announced, Spike Leeand Jada Pinkett Smith have said they will not attend the Feb. 28 ceremony. Movie Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs also issued a statement saying, in part, how the “Academy is taking dramatic steps to alter the makeup of our membership.”

Others who have responded on social media include Cheadle, Snoop Dogg, and filmmaker Michael Moore.

This article was originally published on EW.com