Major Studios Fell Short Of Hiring Women And People Of Color Despite Promises In 2020

A new study found how "performative" major studios were when they promised to hire more women and people of color in 2020.

A new study has found how “performative” major studios were in 2020 during the aftermath of George Floyd’s murder when they promised to hire more women and people of color.

Nearly four years later, research from USC Annenberg’s Inclusion Initiative shows that major studios’ pledges to support inclusion were just “performative acts” and “not real steps towards fostering change,” Variety reported. Findings show that the entertainment industry is still male-dominated, as a look at the 100 top-grossing domestic films in 2023 had 116 directors attached to them with just 14, or 12.1%, being women.

While it’s a slight improvement from the 9% of films directed by women in 2022, it highlights how women directors are still lagging behind men. All the while, the women of color to helm top films in 2023 remained unchanged from the year prior. There were only four women of color, or 3.4%, who helmed one of the 100 top-grossing films of 2023. Three were Asian — Adele Lim (Joy Ride), Celine Song (Past Lives) and Fawn Veerasunthorn (Wish), and the other was Nia DaCosta with The Marvels.

The study found that in the last 17 years, only 27 women have been hired by Universal Pictures to direct a film. Research also showed that 26 directors (22.4%) of the top 100 grossing movies in 2023 were from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups with 14 being Asian (53.8%), eight being Black (30.8%), two being Hispanic/Latino (7.7%), and two other filmmakers of multiracial/multiethnic race (7.7%). It was just a slight jump from 2022’s percentage of 20.7%.

While 2023 saw the box office success of Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and Elizabeth Banks’ Cocaine Bear, women and people of color still have a long way to go when it comes to being represented at the top level of the entertainment industry.

“This report offers a contrast to those who might celebrate the dawning of change in Hollywood after a year in which ‘Barbie’ topped the box office,” the study’s authors write.

“One film or one director are simply not enough to create the sea change that is still needed behind the camera. Until studios, executives and producers alter the way they make decisions about who is qualified and available to work as a director on top-grossing films, there is little reason to believe that optimism is warranted.”