KU professor Kevin Willmott, who co-wrote ‘BlacKkKlansman,’ nominated for screenwriting Oscar

photo by: Associated Press

Kevin Willmott attends the premiere of "BlacKkKlansman" at the Brooklyn Academy of Music on Monday, July 30, 2018, in New York. (Photo by Andy Kropa/Invision/AP)

A University of Kansas professor’s work has been nominated for one of the most prestigious awards in the film industry.

The Academy Awards announced Tuesday “BlacKkKlansman,” which KU’s Kevin Willmott co-wrote with Spike Lee, has been nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay.

Willmott’s and Lee’s screenplay will go up against “A Star is Born,” “The Ballad of Buster Scruggs,” “Can you Ever Forgive Me?” and “If Beale Street Could Talk” for the Oscar.

Set in the mid-1970s, “BlacKkKlansman” is based on the memoir of Ron Stallworth, a black police officer in Colorado Springs who infiltrated the Ku Klux Klan.

The film was nominated for a total of six Oscars, including best picture, film editing and original score. Actor Adam Driver was nominated for best actor in a supporting role. Lee was nominated for directing.

The 91st Academy Awards are scheduled to air at 7 p.m. Feb. 24 on ABC.

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