(New York) In recent years, the film industry has navigated the on-demand streaming revolution, the pandemic, labor strikes and the Barbenheimer phenomenon. But after countless upheavals in Hollywood, you’re still twice as likely to see male characters in theatrical releases as female characters.
According to the annual report from the University of Southern California’s Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, released Monday, only 32% of speaking characters in the top 100 box-office films in 2023 were women or girls. That’s about the same percentage as when Stacy L. Smith began the study in 2007. Back then, it was 30% speaking characters.
The gender imbalance was also pronounced in other areas. Only 30% of leading roles in major films were played by women or girls, a significant drop from 14% in 2022 and roughly the same as in 2010. Only 11% of films had gender parity, with girls or women in 45 to 54.9% of speaking roles.
STILL FROM THE FILM KILLERS OF THE FLOWER MOON
Characters played by Robert De Niro have been seen in four films in 2023, namely Killers of the Flower Moon, Tin Soldier, Inappropriate Behavior And About my Father.
“No matter how you look at the data, 2023 has not been the ‘year of the woman,’” Ms.me Smith in a statement. It is clear that there is either a rejection of women as an audience for more than one or two films a year, or a refusal to find ways to create meaningful change, or both.”
If the industry is to survive the current situation, it must address its inability to employ half the population on screen.
Stacy L. Smit, author of the study
Barbie may have been the number one film at the box office last year, but as has always been the case, a few big releases alone don’t do much to shake up persistent trends.
PHOTO COURTESY OF WARNER BROS. PICTURES
Ryan Gosling as Ken and Margot Robbie as Barbie in the film of the same name
The USC study doesn’t analyze what Hollywood produces, just what’s most watched in theaters. That leaves out a wide range of films produced for on-demand streaming platforms, as well as most independent releases. But by capturing the majority of popular films in theaters, the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative is testing how well the industry’s vows of inclusivity actually match what’s on theater screens.
In an election year when much of Hollywood will be backing Vice President Kamala Harris to become the first female U.S. president, researchers have concluded that “progressive Hollywood” is “actually not progressive at all.”
Progress for other minority groups
The continued lack of progress for female characters in film is only more striking when compared to some of the progress made by underrepresented racial and ethnic groups. While major inequalities remain there, too, some results show considerable change.
STILL FROM THE MOVIE JOY RIDE
Sabrina Wu, Stephanie Hsu, Ashley Park and Sherry Cola in a scene from the film Joy Ridereleased in 2023
In 2023, 44% of speaking characters were from underrepresented groups, roughly matching or slightly exceeding the racial makeup of the U.S. population (41%). The percentage of white characters declined to 56% in 2023, down from 62% the previous year. In 2007, 78% of all characters were white.
Among protagonists, underrepresented racial and ethnic groups made up 37% of main characters, a 6% increase from 2022 and more than ever before. In 2007, that figure was 13%.
Last year’s leading characters were 12.6% black, 5.2% Hispanic or Latino and 18.4% Asian. None of the top 100 films featured casts that matched the U.S. demographic for Hispanics/Latinos, who make up 19.1% of the population — and even more among ticket buyers.
Many other groups were nearly invisible in the top box office films of 2023. There were only 5 out of 100 films with an LGBTQ+ protagonist or co-protagonist. Only 2.2% of films featured a speaking character with a disability. And only four speaking characters were nonbinary.