Oscar nominee Rampling calls awards boycott racist towards whites

By Alex Dobuzinskis LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - British actress and first-time Academy Award nominee Charlotte Rampling said in a radio interview on Friday the boycott of the Oscars protesting the absence of black actors and directors is racist towards whites. In the interview, Rampling was asked by a France-based Europe 1 journalist if she felt African-American director Spike Lee was right to pledge to boycott the Oscars over the absence of blacks among the nominees. "No, I find to the contrary, that it's racist toward whites," said Rampling, who is nominated for her role in the British drama "45 Years." When asked to elaborate, Rampling said "one can never really know," but that "perhaps sometimes black actors have not earned a place in the final running." Rampling's comments came amid a wave of protest over the lack of minorities among the major nominees, including the re-emergence on social media of the hashtag #OscarsSoWhite, which first appeared during the 2015 awards season.