The oh-so-trendy diversity rules that mean Bond would never win his Baftas today: Organisation introduces new guidelines that means movies must meet criteria to qualify for top awards 

  • The James Bond film Skyfall was a hit with critics and won two Baftas in 2013 
  • But title character's privileged background might damage its chances today
  • Organisation is bringing in diversity rules with which films will have to comply

By David Wilkes for Daily Mail

Published: 20:59 EST, 14 December 2016 | Updated: 21:00 EST, 14 December 2016

The James Bond film Skyfall was a hit with critics and audiences around the world, and won two Bafta awards in 2013.

But if rules just revealed by the film academy had applied then, the title character's background as a privileged white heterosexual public school-educated man might have damaged the movie's chances of scooping a gong.

The organisation is bringing in diversity rules which films will have to comply with to be eligible for two of its top annual awards.

Too white and privileged? Daniel Craig in Spectre

From 2019 it will be a requirement that films put forward for the Outstanding British Film and Outstanding Debut by a British Writer, Director or Producer categories must meet the new criteria.

The academy said the 'significant change' demonstrated its intention to take a leading role in 'increasing the representation of under-represented groups in front of and behind the camera'.

A Bafta spokesman said: 'Under-represented groups in the film industry include people from minority ethnic backgrounds, disabled people, women and LGBT [lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender]. It also includes people from lower socio-economic groups.'

In order to meet the standards, productions will need to demonstrate that they have worked to increase the representation of these groups in two out of four areas – on-screen characters and themes; senior roles and crew; industry training and career progression; and appeal to under-represented audiences.

Quite how the diversity drive might have affected recent past winners of Outstanding British Film such as Skyfall, 2010's The King's Speech, 2001's Gosford Park or 1995's The Madness Of King George is not clear.

However, 2002 winner The Warrior, by British-Indian filmmaker Asif Kapadia and set in feudal India, and 2007's This Is England, which told the story of young skinheads growing up in a deprived area of the Midlands in the 1980s, would probably have done just as well. 

How would they fare? The King's Speech (2010) with Colin Firth as King George VI and Helena Bonham Carter as Queen Elizabeth

Gosford Park (2001), with Maggie Smith as Constance Trentham and Kelly Macdonald as Mary MacEachran

Charles Thompson, the founder of Screen Nation, an annual TV and film awards event for Britons of African heritage, suggested that Skyfall 'might struggle' under the new Bafta rules.

He welcomed the move, telling the Daily Telegraph: 'I think it's a good step. It's a first step and it's the beginnings of the work they need to do.'

But the rules were criticised by Philip Davies, the Conservative MP who was on Tuesday elected to Parliament's women and equalities committee.

'I am sure that this new criteria will be welcomed by the politically correct, out-of-touch, privileged film industry luvvies who will be patting themselves on the back for being trendy and right on,' he said.

'In the real world the vast majority of people believe in merit and want awards to go to the best films rather than the most politically correct films.'

Bafta said in a statement: 'Consensus among leading British film producers with whom we've consulted is that working to meet the standards is an achievable and worthwhile activity.'

 

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