The producer of the Golden Globes has made more moves to increase diversity. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association (HFPA) has enhanced its 2024 voting body by more than doubling its number of international voters.
Despite the increase in overall ethnic diversity in the coming year’s voting body, the percentage of Black voters will dip by more than 3% from this year.
Of the total 310 total voters, the HFPA has added 128 international voters to the 87 returning international voters — bringing the total international voters to 215. The remaining 95 voters are current members of the HFPA.
Of the 310 voters, 10% are Black, down from 13.6%. The rest are as follows: white (from 41.7% to 42%), Latinx (from 22.3% to 25%), Asian (11.7% to 14%) and Middle Eastern (10.7% to 9%). Among the voting body, no less than 17% identify as LGBTQ+.
There were only 200 voters for the 2023 Golden Globes in January. In that voting body, 52% self-identified as ethnically diverse. According to Helen Hoehne, president of the HFPA, now 58% of the voting body for the “81st Annual Golden Globe Awards” will be ethnically diverse.
Importantly, the 2024 voting body includes an increase in the total number of countries (from 62 to 76) represented. Among them are Cameroon, Cuba, Costa Rica, Guatemala, Kazakhstan, Malaysia, Serbia and Tanzania.
These expansions are part of the HFPA’s plans to diversify after past criticism. “The efforts put forth to identify, engage, and actively recruit diverse voters is strong evidence of the commitment by the Golden Globes to follow through on its promises to expand and reshape itself,” said Neil Phillips, HFPA chief diversity officer. “It shows that with the right leadership, effective community partnerships, and an unwavering focus, we can achieve remarkable and transformational diversity growth.”
The “81st Annual Golden Globe Awards” ceremony is scheduled for Jan. 7, 2024.
TheGrio is FREE on your TV via Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Roku, and Android TV. Please download theGrio mobile apps today!