( CNN ) -- Might there be a Tyra Banks/Naomi Campbell situation this awards season ? With the announcement of nominations for the Screen Actors Guild Awards and Golden Globes , Viola Davis ' fans had plenty to cheer about . She received nods for her performance in the new ABC drama `` How to Get Away With Murder . '' But `` Scandal '' actress Kerry Washington , one of the darlings of awards seasons past , was nowhere to be found . Is it a case of there being room for only one African-American woman to be celebrated ? It 's not a new concept . In 2005 , Banks invited fellow supermodel Campbell onto her talk show for a conversation about the tension between them . The fashion industry was partially to blame , Banks said . `` Back then , there were 10 top models ... but there was an unwritten rule that only one of them could be black , '' Banks said . `` And Naomi was that one black girl . '' Campbell added in 2013 , `` It does irk me that two women of color have to be pitted against each other . ... I 'm very proud of Tyra and what she 's done with 'America 's Next Top Model . ' I 'm proud of her ; I 'm proud to know her . '' Likewise , model Iman told Time in 2003 that when she arrived in New York in 1975 to model , she `` learned that magazines would only use one black girl at a time , and they were trying to create a competition between us . '' Davis has received plenty of acclaim for her work in films and began drawing even more awards buzz from almost the moment she debuted as tough-as-nails law professor Annalise Keating on `` How to Get Away With Murder . '' Washington , meanwhile , has reigned as a fan favorite during the four seasons of her hit show `` Scandal . '' In 2013 , she was saluted for being the first black woman to lead a weekly TV series since Diahann Carroll starred in `` Julia , '' which premiered in 1968 . Washington 's absence from this year 's nominations was very quickly noted . Debra Birnbaum , executive editor for TV for Variety , tweeted , `` Another early morning , another awards snub for @ kerrywashington . I 'm getting tired of complaining about it . # scandal . '' Another fan tweeted , `` And again how is @ kerrywashington not nominated for @ ScandalABC ? ! It 's baffling to me . Congrats on the nom Viola Davis . # GlodenGlobes . '' Writing for The Wrap , Jethro Nededog noted Wednesday that the SAG nomination for Davis but not Washington may have illuminated the lingering diversity problem in Hollywood . He said it was not that Washington was n't deserving this time around , because `` At the top of the game for TV 's dramatic actresses , she should have been a shoo-in for a SAG nomination again this year . '' `` Of course , Washington 's nomination history for a SAG award is n't as deep as the one she has for the Emmys , which she received nominations for in 2013 and 2014 . And the Golden Globes also saw fit to nominate her only once before , in 2014 , just like the SAGs , '' Nededog wrote . `` But if it 's true that there 's only room for one black leading actress in the run for awards , then Hollywood is n't as progressive-minded as we believe ourselves to be . '' Both shows are tied to Shonda Rhimes , who holds the distinction of being the most powerful woman of color in Hollywood . Rhimes rules Thursday nights on ABC , with `` Scandal '' ( which she created ) and `` How to Get Away With Murder '' ( which she executive produced ) airing back to back . Known for building in diversity , both of color and of sexuality , into her projects , Rhimes told the New York Times in September that she saw nothing unique in the lineup . `` I 'm not sitting around going , 'Wow , it 's historic to have two black women on television , ' `` Rhimes said . `` I do n't think it 's odd to see two black women standing in the same place because , well , that 's my house . Like , it 's not a thing . To me , it just feels like Tuesday . ''
Viola Davis was nominated for awards this season , but Kerry Washington was not . Both star in TV shows tied to producer Shonda Rhimes . The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has been criticized by some members of the entertainment industry over its lack of diversity among nominees.