BAFTA refuses to introduce gender neutral categories

Acting awards will continue to be in separate male and female categories

The academy will continue to use gendered categories for its awards, with performers required to confirm whether they would like to be considered for either the Best Actor or Best Actress category.

Since 2022, Bafta has been giving "proactive and thoughtful consultation" on the subject of gender neutral categories, and in 2023 the organisation's chief executive said the topic was "constantly under review."

According to the publication, guidelines released by Baftas last week state that film producers must “confirm the gender/gender identity of each candidate for nomination” ahead of next year’s ceremony.

Bafta's website also says that acting awards at the 2025 ceremony will once again be divided into separate categories for males and females.

The production awards for directing, cinematography, fashion, sound and music are already gender-neutral.

In recent years, the subject of gender-neutral award categories to accommodate for non-binary performers has gathered increasing attention across the entertainment industry.

In 2023, the BRITs introduced non-gendered awards, scrapping British Female Solo Artist and British Male Solo Artist for the new awards of Artist of the Year and International Artist of the Year.

In a statement, organisers said the move meant artists were celebrated "solely for their music and work, rather than how they choose to identify or as others may see them."

This came after Sam Smith was excluded from the gendered categories in 2022 because they identify as neither male nor female.

In film, the Academy Awards also revealed earlier this year that they were discussing the possibility of gender-neutral categories at the Oscars.

Academy CEO Bill Kramer told Variety in June: “We are exploring this topic with our awards, membership, equity, and inclusion committees and soon with our Board of Governors.

“It’s in the early exploration stage and one of many conversations about the future of awards and the Oscars. We are still investigating how it could look.”