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#  Editor’s Picks: Viola Davis Speaks Out … 'The Problem Is Not With the Oscars'

January 24 2016

Written by John Boone.

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OSCAR POLITICS--Viola Davis will not be attending the Oscars.

Though, not necessarily because she is joining the boycott against the show. "'Cause I'm gonna be on vacation," she told ET with a laugh at ELLE's 6th Annual Women in Television Dinner.

The 50-year-old actress did speak out on the fact that the Academy nominated exclusively white actors for the second year in a row. "The problem is not with the Oscars," she explained. "The problem is with the Hollywood movie-making system."

Davis, a two-time Oscar nominee for *Doubt* in 2009 and *The Help* in 2012, explained the questions that "the people who are in power who have the yay or nay vote" should be asking to fix the diversity issue.

"How many black films are being produced every year? How are they being distributed? The films that are being made, are the big-time producers thinking outside of the box in terms of how to cast the role?" she told us. "Can you cast a black woman in that role? Can you cast a black man in that role?"

"The problem isn't even our pay," Davis added. "You could probably line up all the A-List black actresses out there \[and\] they probably don't make what one A-List white woman makes in one film. That's the problem. You can change the Academy, but if there are no black films being produced, what is there to vote for?" [(Read the rest.)](http://www.etonline.com/news/180549_exclusive_viola_davis_speaks_out_on_oscars_boycott/)

-cw

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