Emma Watson Invited to Join the Academy

Emma Watson has been invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. The actress is among the 683 new members invited to join the Academy, the largest and most diverse class of new members in its 89-year history.

The new class is more than double last year’s 322 invitees, which included Daniel Radcliffe, and the Academy was eager to highlight the group’s diversity in an announcement Wednesday. Forty-six percent of the new members are female, and 41% are people of color. Those numbers are enough to bring the overall makeup of the 7,000-plus-member organization up to 27% female (from 25%) and 11% people of color (from 8%). The new class also includes 283 international members from 59 countries, while the group’s ages range from 24 to 91.

The Academy President, Cheryl Boone Isaacs, said in a statement,

This class continues our long-term commitment to welcoming extraordinary talent reflective of those working in film today. We encourage the larger creative community to open its doors wider and create opportunities for anyone interested in working in this incredible and storied industry.

Other invitees include the actress Carmen Ejogo, who is set to play Seraphina Picquery, the President of the Magical Congress of the United States in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, and David Barron, producer of all eight Potter films. The full list of new invitees can be found here.