Rachel Zegler, Women and the Academy Awards

A starlet’s lack of an invitation is a symptom of systemic bias against women at the Academy

West Side Story is streaming on HBO. Source: Cineaste365 (December 17, 2013 - DAY 067) - 'West Side Story' - Jerome Robbins & Robert Wise

Despite bombing at the box office, Steven Spielberg’s adaptation of the 1957 musical West Side Story has been a critical success, having received nominations for seven Academy Awards—including Best Picture—and four Golden Globes, of which it has won three. Given its acclaim, one could safely assume that the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences would have the dignity to invite, at the very least, the leads of the film to the Oscars, especially given the film’s historic Latino representation.

For Rachel Zegler, that was not the case. The 20-year-old actress made her film debut as the female lead of 2021’s West Side Story, Maria: a Puerto Rican star crossed-lover opposite Polish-Irish Tony, played by Ansel Elgort. Zegler revealed her lack of an invitation on an Instagram post on March 20. When a commenter asked what she would be wearing to the Oscars, Zegler replied “I’m not invited, so sweatpants and my boyfriend’s flannel.” That post has since had its comments turned off.

What ensued was a backlash on social media. Individuals including Gloria Calderón Kellett, acclaimed writer and actress; Sierra Teller Ornelas, famed filmmaker and screenwriter; and Russ Tamblyn, who starred in the original 1961 film adaptation of West Side Story all weighed in on the situation. “As a voting member and the original Riff, let me say: it’s your duty to find Rachel a seat at the Oscars. She STARS in #Westsidestory which is nominated across the board. When they say representation matters, this is what that means. Please do right by her,” Tamblyn tweeted.

Although simply being in a picture nominated for an Award does not automatically result in an invitation, tickets for nominated pictures are usually distributed to the cast and crew of the studio that made the film  – in the case of West Side Story, 20th Century Fox– sees fit.

Following the fallout, Zegler tweeted: “my goodness, folks!! appreciate all the support, i really really do. we live in such unprecedented times, and a lot of work behind the scenes goes into making movie magic happen. that goes for film productions…and awards shows alike. let’s all just respect the process and i’ll get off my phone x R.”

After much backlash and commentary,  Zegler was finally invited to the Oscars. According to an Academy spokesperson, the Academy granted  Zegler a position as a presenter. Presenters, who are those responsible for announcing which films won what awards, receive tickets alongside nominees. Zegler presented the award for Best Visual Effects alongside Jacob Elordi, joking that, “ I never thought that I would be here six days ago.”

This is not the only controversy to have arisen with the Academy. In 2015 and 2016, all acting nominations went exclusively to white actors and actresses, prompting the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite and later, even calls for boycotts of the Awards. Skin color is not the only front on which the Academy lacks diversity. Women make up 50.8% of the United States population, and yet are heavily underrepresented at the Oscars. In 2021, it was considered historic when 76 of the 235 individuals nominated for awards were women— a paltry 32.%. In 2022, that number  dropped to 65 of 229 female nominees, or 28.3%. 

This just reinforces a trend seen commonly within the Hollywood industry. In 2021, only 32% of the highest grossing American films featured women as the main protagonists. Only 7% of these films had more women than men, compared to 85% of films that starred more men than women, according to Dr. Martha Lauzen, an American academic and researcher in the field of women in film. These statistics have prevailed despite recent upheavals in the film industry following the #MeToo movement. 

Nevertheless, Zegler was grateful. “…a huge thank you to @TheAcademy @WillPackerProds for the presenter spot; i’m so excited to open that shiny envelope. i could not be more grateful to everyone who helped make this possible. Seriously,” the starlet tweeted on March 23.