Natalie Portman's Oscar Dress Embroidered with Names of Female Directors Gets Praise from Fans

Once again, Academy Award winner Natalie Portman used fashion to make a statement about discrimination.

Natalie Portman stunned on the Oscars red carpet in a gorgeous black and gold Dior creation, and her gown and cape were a pointed criticism of the Academy's snubbing of Hollywood's female movie directors.

The Academy-Award winning actress made sure that the names of the directors of some of the best films of 2020 were not overlooked by the public, as they were by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences.

This is not the first time Natalie has openly criticized the discrimination which limits female film directors

NATALIE PORTMAN'S FASHION PROTEST

In order to make clear her disillusionment with the Academy once again nominating only male directors for the Best Director Oscar, Natalie had Dior personalize the dramatic black cape she wore over her gown.

On the left lapel was embroidered in gold thread the names of women directors who created brilliant films in 2020, among them Greta Gerwig, Lulu Wang, and Lorene Scafaria. She posted on Instagram:

"Honoring these remarkable women last night who were not recognized for their incredible work: @thumbelulu, #GretaGerwig, @lorenescafaria, @mariellestilesheller, @matidiop, @msmelina, @alma.harel, and @celine_sciamma."

10 YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF KATHRYN BIGELOW'S WIN

This year, the snub of the female directors was more marked, seeing as it was the 10 year anniversary of Katheryn Bigelow winning the Best Director Award in 2010 for "The Hurt Locker." She was the first woman ever to win, and since then, only one woman was nominated.

NO FEMALE NOMINEES IN 2020

In the Academy's 92-year history, only five women have been nominated for Best Director: Lina Wertmüller in 1976 for “Seven Beauties”, Jane Campion in 1993 for “The Piano,” Sofia Coppola in 2003 for “Lost in Translation”, Kathryn Bigelow in 2010 for “The Hurt Locker”, and Greta Gerwig in 2017 for “Lady Bird."

BEST MOVIE, BUT NOT BEST DIRECTOR

Curiously, Greta Gerwig's adaptation of the beloved classic "Little Women" starring Saoirse Ronan, Emma Watson, Florence Pugh, Eliza Scanlen, Laura Dern, and Meryl Streep, among others, was nominated for Best Movie - but overlooked for best Director.

NATALIE PORTMAN PROTESTS AT THE GOLDEN GLOBES

This is not the first time Natalie has openly criticized the discrimination which limits female film directors. In 2018, Natalie was asked to present the Golden Globe for Best Director, which she did, announcing:

"And here are the all-male nominees..."

THE TIME'S UP MOVEMENT

In 2018, the Time's Up movement was launched. Its goal was to provide the women who had come forward with #MeToo with legal resources. #MeToo exposed the excretable sexual abuse culture at the heart of the Hollywood studio system which victimized hundreds of actresses.

FASHION PROTESTS ABUSE

As a gesture of support and solidarity towards the women who had been subjected to sexual harassment in the entertainment industry, Natalie Portman, and every other female star, wore black to the Oscars.

Sadly, the fight for equal opportunity and recognition is still far from won. What seemed to be the first step towards the recognition of women directors in 2010 with Katheryn Bigelow's win, turned out to be a step back.

Natalie, who is a director as well as an actress, is at the forefront of the group of brilliant and successful women who won't be silenced by the "boy's club" mentality which has prevailed at the Academy for nearly a century.

Natalie, considered one of the most talented actresses of her generation, has been nominated for an Oscar as Best Actress three times, and won for her role in "Black Swan" in 2011 - the year after Katheryn Bigelow won her own Oscar as Best Director.

It was during the filming of "Black Swan" that Natalie met the love of her life. Natalie Portman's husband, Benjamin Millepied, is a ballet dancer and choreographer, and it was he who coached the actress during the filming of the movie.

Natalie and Benjamin share two children: son Aleph, 9, and daughter Amalia, 3. The couple first resided in Paris where Benjamin was the dance director for the Paris Opera Ballet, but the family has since moved to Los Angeles.