Vanity Fair's Hollywood special hits back at Oscars lack of diversity

The Tinseltown special features a tour de force of talent from all ages and ethnic backgrounds

New issue: Vanity Fair's awards season cover

Annie Leibovitz exclusively for Vanity Fair

Emma Powell2 February 2016

Vanity Fair has hit back at the Oscars diversity controversy with their Hollywood issue.

The cover – which was shot by Annie Leibovitz – comes amidst the race row which has plagued this year's Academy Awards.

Best actress nominees Cate Blanchett, Jennifer Lawrence, Brie Larson, Charlotte Rampling and Saoirse Ronan star alongside a mix of actresses from different age groups and ethnic backgrounds.

Viola Davis, Jane Fonda and Gugu Mbatha-Raw feature in the 22nd edition of the Tinseltown special as well as Dame Helen Mirren, Diane Keaton and 2014 Best Actress Oscar winner Lupita Nyong'o.

<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en"> <p dir="ltr" lang="en">Could these women be any more impressive? Introducing Vanity Fair’s 2016 Hollywood cover <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://t.co/nFgK4J7hHg" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-3171266-https://t.co/nFgK4J7hHg" data-vars-event-id="c23">https://t.co/nFgK4J7hHg</a> <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://t.co/0tyVXTYo9G" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-3171266-https://t.co/0tyVXTYo9G" data-vars-event-id="c23">pic.twitter.com/0tyVXTYo9G</a> — VANITY FAIR (@VanityFair) <a rel="nofollow" target="_blank" href="https://twitter.com/VanityFair/status/694219422693728257" class="body-link" data-vars-item-name="BL-3171266-https://twitter.com/VanityFair/status/694219422693728257" data-vars-event-id="c23">February 1, 2016</a>

The annual awards ceremony faced a backlash after 20 nominees in the acting categories were white for a second consecutive year.

Spike Lee, Will Smith and his wife Jada Pinkett-Smith all announced they would be boycotting the bash while stars including 50 Cent and Tyrese Gibson called for Chris Rock to step down from his role as host.

Mark Ruffalo threw his support behind the boycott, George Clooney criticised the awards for going in the "wrong direction" and Dustin Hoffman blamed the lack of diversity on the “subliminal racism” in America.