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Sure, Kobe Bryant’s animated short Dear Basketball was nice and everything—enough to win him an Oscar—but it apparently wasn’t good enough to win him a coveted spot with the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.
The 8,000-member organization, that represents the inner workings of Hollywood, typically considers those who have won or are nominated for an Oscar for inclusion, Variety reports. Bryant, like others, was considered, and the organization’s Short Films and Feature Animation branch voted to let him in, according to the news organization.
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But the Academy’s governors committee overruled and rescinded the invitation, Variety confirmed.
Ongoing criticisms that Hollywood is an exclusive institution that needs to do more to open its doors to more people of color have led to a perceived lowering of standards, according to Variety. Some of those who are part of the ranks say the newcomers are not deserving of an invite to the club, Variety reports.
What adds more layers to the Bryant situation is that these discussions come amid the presence of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements shining a spotlight on widespread sexual improprieties in the film industry. Last year, more than 17,000 people signed a petition demanding Bryant be stripped of his Oscar given his 2003 sexual assault case. Bryant’s accuser refused to testify but he later settled a civil suit out of court.