MTV has gone through a bit of rebranding recently. Last weekend, they held their MTV Movie and TV Awards (formerly known as the MTV Movie Awards). This was the first year television was included in the award show. This is also the first time actors were not divided into groups based on gender. Both men and women were nominated in the same categories. “We have to constantly be pushing ourselves to not only respond to culture but lead it,” MTV president Chris McCarthy said to CNN Money. With this being the first time MTV went gender-neutral with their awards, the night was filled speeches on diversity and acceptance.
Impactful Speeches on Diversity and Acceptance at the MTV Movie and TV Awards
The highlight of the night was Emma Watson’s acceptance speech. She won the Best Actor award for her performance in Beauty and the Beast. She recognized the importance of the moment. “MTV’s move to create a genderless award for acting will mean something different to everyone. But to me, it indicates that acting is about the ability to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, and that doesn’t need to be separated into two different categories.” Her speech received widespread positive reaction on social media.
Read More: Passionate Speeches Take Spotlight at MTV Movie and TV Awards
Newcomer Millie Bobby Brown became the first woman to take home the Best Actor in a Show award for “Stranger Things”. She thanked the creators of the Netflix series for giving her the opportunity to play a “badass female, iconic character.”
There was also a change in one category’s title. Best Fight became Best Fight Against the System, and the film “Hidden Figures” took home the popcorn. Actor Taraji P. Henson delivered a passionate speech to change the stereotype that girls are capable of succeeding in math and science. “It became my mission, and everyone’s mission who was involved with this film, to dispel that myth, so that another young girl would not grow up thinking that her mind wasn’t capable of grasping math and science. If it were not for these women, we wouldn’t be in space,” said Henson.
Finally, the Oscar-winning movie “Moonlight” won in the Best Kiss categories for actors Ashton Sanders and Jharrel Jerome. The two men called for more actors to take bigger risks on the screen. “It is okay for us young performers, especially us minority performers, to step out of the box… It’s for us artists who are out there, who need to do whatever it takes to get people to wake up,” Jerome said.
These speeches all have strong durability because their message will stay in the viewers’ minds for some time. This year’s MTV Movie and TV Awards show already shaped pop culture history by being more accepting. These speeches that promoted diversity will be looked back on in the near future as Hollywood is held to higher expectations when it comes to recognizing more diverse artists.
More from the Ethos3 Blog:
Never Stop Telling Stories: Inspiration from LGBTQ Women in America
Which Presentation Personas Make the Best Party Host
Example of Durability: The White House Correspondents’ Dinner
