Emilia Clarke, Dave Chappelle among 928 invited to be film academy members

Emilia Clarke, who has starred in the films "Me Before You" and "Solo: A Star Wars Story," has been invited to be a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. File Photo by David Silpa/UPI | License Photo

Dave Chappelle, winner of the Best Comedy Album for "The Age of Spin & Deep in the Heart of Texas," arrives in the press room at the 60th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony in New York City on January 28. File Photo by John Angelillo/UPI | License Photo

June 25 (UPI) -- The Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences on Monday invited Abigail Breslin, Andrew Braugher, Alison Brie, Hannibal Buress, Emilia Clarke and Dave Chappelle to join its membership.

Also among the 928 artists asked to join the body that votes on the Oscars honoring excellence in film are Naveen Andrews, Gemma Arterton, Timothee Chalamet, Olivia Colman, Kim Dickens, Taye Diggs, Omar Epps, Eva Green, Jennifer Grey, Regina Hall, Lena Headey, Lily James, Ken Jeong, Rashida Jones, Toby Jones, Mindy Kaling, Daniel Kaluuya, Diane Kruger, Adrian Lester, Blake Lively, Derek Luke, Audra McDonald, Olivia Munn, Kumail Nanjiani, Kal Penn, Mekhi Phifer, Daisy Ridley, Amy Schumer, Amber Tamblyn, Liv Tyler, Blair Underwood, Benedict Wong and Evan Rachel Wood.

Forty-nine percent of the 2018 invitees are female and 38 percent are people of color, the academy said.

The academy is actively trying to be more inclusive since it was criticized for having no people of color among its acting nominees at the 2015 and 2016 Oscars.