Five years ago, “Billions” star Asia Kate Dillon made headlines after penning a fiery open letter in Variety, urging SAG-AFTRA to finally ditch gendered acting categories. The move came after Dillon, who is non-binary, was asked to participate in the motion picture nominating committee and was once again reminded of the industry’s rigid “Best Actor” vs. “Best Actress” divide.
For Dillon, the whole thing felt like déjà vu. Back in 2017, while submitting for “Billions” at the Emmys, they publicly called out the gender binary as a “false dichotomy” and questioned why the industry was still clinging to it like an outdated relic. Fast forward to the 2023 Tony Awards, and Dillon didn’t even bother submitting for their Broadway run in “Macbeth” alongside Daniel Craig and Ruth Negga, because why play a game that keeps you boxed in?
And Dillon’s not alone. A quiet but growing list of non-binary actors are refusing to participate in award shows unless the rules change, sparking whispers in Hollywood about whether the days of “Best Actor” and “Best Actress” are numbered. Some insiders say the old-school traditionalists are digging in their heels, but others believe this is exactly the kind of shake-up the industry needs.
After all, as one awards voter allegedly put it, “If we can make room for 10 Best Picture nominees, surely we can figure this out.”