Kobe Bryant has been denied entry into the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, it has been revealed
Kobe Bryant now has an Academy Award in his trophy case, but he won’t be joining the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences anytime soon.
The Lakers legend was denied entry into the Academy, despite the fact that its Short Films and Feature Animation branch voted to invite him into the organization.
Bryant won an Oscar this year for his animated short film Dear Basketball.
The Academy has approximately 8,000 members and generally considers inviting in those who win or are nominated for an Oscar.
Members of the Academy are called on every year to vote for the Oscar nominees in their branch, as well as for the esteemed Best Picture award.
It was the Academy’s governor’s committee that decided to rescind Bryant’s invitation to join, according to Variety.
The committee argued that the NBA star has not yet done enough in the short film world to deserve a spot.
![Bryant (pictured with wife Vanessa) won an Oscar this year for his film Dear Basketball. The Academy generally considers inviting in those who win or are nominated for an Oscar](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/21/05/4D7861C300000578-0-image-a-61_1529555557678.jpg)
Bryant (pictured with wife Vanessa) won an Oscar this year for his film Dear Basketball. The Academy generally considers inviting in those who win or are nominated for an Oscar
It added that Bryant needs to ‘show evidence of a larger career in the field’ before he can join the Academy.
Bryant’s absence will no doubt anger some critics who have called out the Academy’s diversity issue, which came to a head with the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite.
The hashtag began trending during the 2016 award seasons after not a single person of color was nominated in the major acting categories at the Oscars for two years in a row.
Following the controversy, Cheryl Boone Isaacs, the Academy’s first black president, pledged to double the number of women and people of color in the organization by 2020.
![The Academy's governor's committee argued that the NBA star has not yet done enough in the short film world to deserve a spot](https://i.dailymail.co.uk/i/newpix/2018/06/21/05/4D78619F00000578-0-image-a-62_1529555564160.jpg)
The Academy’s governor’s committee argued that the NBA star has not yet done enough in the short film world to deserve a spot
But others will likely celebrate the governor’s committee’s decision to block Bryant from the organization.
The NBA star was a controversial Oscar nominee amid the #MeToo movement due to the fact that he was accused of sexual assault in 2003.
More than 17,000 people signed a petition demanding that the Academy strip Bryant of his Oscar nomination – which he later won.
The governor’s committee’s decision could still be overruled by the Board of Governors, which includes notable figures such as Whoopi Goldberg, Steven Spielberg, Tom Hanks, and Laura Dern.
A final list of the newest members of the Academy will be released on Monday.