Why has Taylor Swift been invited to join the Oscars Academy along with Austin Butler and Ke Huy Quan

It has been announced that 398 artists and executives have been invited to join the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences which is the organisation behind the Oscars Academy Awards. 

The very long list of celebrities includes Taylor Swift, Austin Butler, Ke Huy Quan, Paul Mescal, Keke Palmer, Stephanie Hsu, The Weeknd (Abel Tesfaye), Selma Blair and Nicholas Hoult to name a few. 

The invite has gone out to those that have distinguished themselves in their contributions to motion pictures such as actor’s, musicians, directors, producers, publicists, makeup artists, cinematographers and production designers. 

Academy CEO Bill Kramer and President Janet Yang said in a statement “The Academy is proud to welcome these artists and professionals into our membership.”

“They represent extraordinary global talent across cinematic disciplines and have made a vital impact on the arts and sciences of motion pictures and on movie fans worldwide.”

If all 398 invites accept the membership it will bring the total Academy members up to 10, 817. 

Oscar winners are invited to join so it is understandable that Austin Butler who won the ‘Best Actor’ award for his role in ‘Elvis’ and actor Ke Huy Quan was awarded ‘Best Supporting Actor’ for his role in ‘Everything Everywhere’ both received invitations to join. 

So why was pop star Taylor Swift - who has never won or even been nominated for an Oscar -  been invited to join the elite members club? 

Some people are eligible for membership if their work was in the categories that release Oscar shortlists before nominations. Tay-Swift’s song ‘Carolina’ for the motion picture ‘Where the Crawdads Sing’ was shortlisted but didn’t make the cut for the final nominations. 

The A-listers have only been invited and not automatic memberships. The person must accept the invitation to join but they can also decline. In 2016 Black Panther' director Ryan Coogler declined the invitation as he doesn’t ‘buy into’ awards. 

According to Variety Academy rules states, the membership process is by sponsorship, not application. Candidates must be sponsored by two Academy members from the branch to which the candidate is seeking admission. Academy Award winners and nominees do not require sponsors. 

The list of actors are: 

• Zar Amir-Ebrahimi
• Sakura Ando
• Selma Blair
• Marsha Stephanie Blake
• Austin Butler
• Raúl Castillo
• Chang Chen
• Ram Charan
• Kerry Condon
• Robert John Davi
• Dolly De Leon
• Martina Gedeck
• Bill Hader
• Nicholas Hoult
• Stephanie Hsu
• Tin Lok Koo
• Vicky Krieps
• Joanna Kulig
• Lashana Lynch
• A Martinez
• Noémie Merlant
• Paul Mescal
• Richard Mofe-Damijo
• Keke Palmer
• Park Hae-il
• Ke Huy Quan
• NT Rama Rao Jr.
• Paul Reiser
• Rosa Salazar

For the full list of all of the membership invites and other categories head over to the official Oscars Website.