Oscars Diversity Issue: What the Academy's CEO Thinks of the 'Crisis' 

More and more stars are expressing their disbelief about the upcoming Academy Awards, many of which cried foul at the lack of non-white actors on the nominations list.

The controversy has already caused a lot of actors backing out of the event, with names like George Clooney and Lupita Nyong'o skipping the ceremonies altogether.

BBC noted that Clooney won two Academy Awards himself, but the actor did not like the lack of diversity. He felt that "Creed," "Concussion," "Beasts of No Nation," and "Straight Outta Compton" deserved nominations. 

He said, "I think around 2004, certainly there were black nominees -- like Don Cheadle, Morgan Freeman. And all of a sudden, you feel like we're moving in the wrong direction. There were nominations left off the table."

Clooney also pointed out that it is even worse for Hispanics, adding that "We need to get better at this. We used to be better at it."

Still, this did not faze the organizers. In a statement, Academy President Cheryl Boone Isaacs said that the organization is "taking dramatic steps to alter the makeup of our membership."

Dawn Hudson wrote in a guest column for The Hollywood Reporter that "there's not one part of the industry that doesn't need to be addressed, and it's been this way for 25 years." 

She denied the racism issue, saying that the diversity problem is more "cultural" and "institutional" instead. She said that over the past four years, the Academy has hired "between 45 and 50 percent people of color," insisting that the Academy has ensured that they are identifying talented artists of color to be considered for membership.

There are members who also dismiss the claims of racism, noting that the nominations are a reflection of the performances of various artists in the last year. Penelope Ann Miller took offense at being called a racist, insisting that "It was just an incredibly competitive year," per The Hollywood Reporter. 

Many artists are pleading with host Chris Rock to step down to make a statement against the "blatant racism" of the show.

The show must go on on February 28, but until the Academy retracts their nominations to add several deserving actors of color, it looks like the awards show is going to have to make do with a little less dazzle from certain celebrities, what with their boycott and all.