On March 2, viewers across the country will tune in to watch the Oscars and witness celebrities win for their achievements in cinematography and acting. These award shows — the Golden Globes, Grammys and Tonys — celebrate the entertainment and arts industry as stars gather together in exclusive events made available to the general population via social media and television.
Because of the huge traction these award shows garner, celebrities often make political speeches as they accept their award, like Chappell Roan, who criticized big record labels in the music industry when she won Best New Artist in the 2025 Grammys. While these speeches are often well-intentioned, the very basis of these award shows is based on classism and exclusivity, which creates hypocrisy in these political statements. In order to create true change, celebrities must go beyond these one-time speeches and work to dismantle the systems they contribute to that create these inequalities.
At their very core, award shows are political. Even if no one is going up to the microphone to give a political speech, the entire basis of them is to first win the nomination, then the award. While we often think of politics involving the government, anything can be political when there is a power struggle or allocation of resources. The fight and campaign to win a category makes the award show a political matter. The artists are not just competing for who’s the best — a win signifies cultural significance in society. The voters, a select group of industry elites, are the ones who get to dictate the winner — not broad public opinion. Award shows are displays of status where wealth and power are celebrated and judged. Giving political speeches at these shows can be a good start for celebrities to help their cause, but it occurs at a place and industry based entirely on exclusivity.
Hollywood has historically excluded marginalized groups, and many of the gestures done to remedy that are performative. In 2024, the Hollywood Diversity Report showed that actors who are Black, indigenous and people of color made up 43.6% of the United States population in 2023 and have reached more proportionate representation in leading and streaming roles, but they are still underrepresented as film writers and directors. Meanwhile, women reached an appropriate 51% representation in streaming film leads but are still behind men in film directors, writers and streaming film actors.
Paying attention to gaps like these is crucial in the fight for equality. If the entertainment industry was really striving for the justice its players so often champion, it could obviously be doing more, especially considering that the report comes out twice a year. While a lot of this data may seem like just numbers, it represents the opportunities marginalized groups are left out of and unable to complete. Rather than just quick, performative gestures, the real change lies in lifelong, systemic change by supporting diverse creators and providing equal opportunities. Despite efforts to increase diversity, as we’ve seen with more diverse stars on the screen, underrepresented communities are still lacking behind the scenes. The voices that often speak out on issues do little to actually change things, even though it’s so important to have diversity both in front of and behind the cameras.
Political speeches have called out this exclusion before, such as at the 2018 Academy Awards show, when actress Frances McDormand advocated for inclusion riders in acceptance speech. These are stipulations that actors can include in contracts for a certain amount of diversity in a cast. In films where star actors join the projects, they can and should use their influence to advocate for an equal set.
The speech sparked conversation regarding diversity in Hollywood and a celebrity’s power to influence it. However, inclusion riders never really took off, and diversity is still an issue. While McDormand’s speech was obviously well-meaning, and she herself is not entirely responsible for the lack of diversity representation, it shows how simply speaking out against inequality doesn’t change the issue when there is a lack of a follow-through or continuous representation.
In a more recent example, Chappell Roan donated $25,000 to the charity Backline, which focuses on mental health for music artists, after her Grammy speech. It is definitely a step in the right direction and shows a commitment to the cause, but it is still not the end of the conversation and certainly not a solution on its own. The donation and speech help bring attention to struggling artists, but a one-time event done at a place where these very struggling artists wouldn’t even be allowed to enter simply isn’t enough. Like the McDormand example, if she doesn’t talk about the issue throughout her career, the cause will fade away and changes won’t be made.
Because of their success, celebrities have a vast amount of privilege and can comfortably speak out against these issues. Their wealth and influence automatically give them a platform, and though they may truly care about their cause, their actions prove paradoxical in their participation in exclusive spaces and lack of recognition that by doing so, they are keeping others out, often furthering the inequalities they advocate against.
These speeches raise awareness about an issue, but they are simply not enough to create any real meaningful change. If celebrities truly care about the issue, it can’t just end at delivering a speech and maybe promoting the cause for a little bit later — they must continue making efforts until equality is reached. To do so, they need to use their platform and wealth to pursue change and advocate to dismantle the systems they’re part of that create the very inequality they preach about. If they are serious, they cannot just do the bare minimum. They must do the work to truly address the issue. Until then, these political speeches will remain what they are — nothing but deeply hypocritical words.
Emma Hannan believes that instead of watching award shows, you should read the Pitt News. You can reach her at emh249@pitt.edu.