Beyonce Among 178 Invited to Join Film Academy

Oscar statues are inspected for blemishes during ... Reuters

Beyonce Knowles, Russell Brand, David Duchovny and “King’s Speech” director Tom Hooper have been invited to join theAcademyofMotion Picture Artsand Sciences.

The film academy said Friday it has invited 178 film-industry workers to join its ranks this year.

Documentarian Tim Hetherington, who was nominated for an Oscar this year and then killed inLibyatwo months after the ceremony, was invited posthumously to join the academy.

Other invitees include actors Bradley Cooper, Gerard Butler, Mila Kunis, Jennifer Garner, Jesse Eisenberg and Ellen Page; “The Kids Are All Right” writer-director Lisa Cholodenko; writer Aaron Sorkin; Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige and the academy’s new chief operations officer, Ric Robertson.

The film academy has just under 6,000 voting members.

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