Black Panther Actor Michael B. Jordan Vows to Adopt Inclusion Rider
Etonline.com: Michael B. Jordan is joining the fight for inclusion and diversity in Hollywood.
The Black Panther star took to Instagram on Wednesday to announce that his production company will be embracing the addition of an inclusion rider for all future projects.
The term, which gained nationwide attention on Sunday when Frances McDormand took the stage as the 90th Annual Academy Awards to accept her Best Actress Oscar and implored everyone in Hollywood to advocate for inclusion riders.
The term refers to a stipulation in a performer's contract that requires the cast and crew of the films they appear in to meet diversity standards or risk losing the star. According to Jordan, the clause will be standard for all films he's involved in.
"In support of the women & men who are leading this fight, I will be adopting the Inclusion Rider for all projects produced by my company Outlier Society," the 31-year-old actor captioned a photo of himself standing with Alana Mayo, Head of Production and Development for Outlier Society, and his agent, Phillip Sun.
"I’ve been privileged to work with powerful woman & persons of color throughout my career & it’s Outlier’s mission to continue to create for talented individuals going forward," he continued.
McDormand stole the spotlight at this year's Oscars when, during her acceptance speech, she asked every female Oscar nominee in the audience to stand up. During the emotionally charged demonstration of unity, McDormand asked every executive watching to help female filmmakers and stars tell their stories on the big screen, then finished her speech with two important words: "Inclusion rider."
Backstage after the show, McDormand admitted that inclusion riders were a relatively new concept to her.
"I just found out about inclusion riders," she told reporters. "It has always been available to everyone who does a negotiation on a film. You can ask for and/or demand 50 percent diversity in cast and crew. I just learned that after 35 years in being in the film business."
