GLAAD Report: Hollywood is failing LGBTQ characters in movies
Tue. May 22, 2018 12:52 PM by GoPride.com News Staff
photo credit // logoboom / shutterstock.com
Los Angeles, CA -
A new report released today by GLAAD shows the number of major studio movies with LGBT characters fell from 23 in 2016 to 14 in 2017.
GLAAD found that of the 109 releases from major studios in 2017, only 12.8% (14) of them included characters that are LGBTQ. That's the lowest percentage of LGBTQ-inclusive major studio releases since GLAAD began tracking in 2012. Not one of the 109 releases included a transgender character, a drop from the one transgender character portrayed in 2016, who only served as a punchline.
"At a time when the entertainment industry is holding much needed discussions about inclusion, now is the time to ensure the industry takes meaningful action and incorporates LGBTQ stories and creators as among priorities areas for growing diversity," said Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD President and CEO.
20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures both received an 'Insufficient' rating; Paramount Pictures, Sony Entertainment, and Walt Disney received 'Poor' ratings; and Lionsgate Entertainment and Warner Brothers received 'Failing' ratings.
In this year's Studio Responsibility Index (SRI), GLAAD called on the seven major film studios to make sure that 20% of annual major studio releases include LGBTQ characters by 2021, and that 50% of films include LGBTQ characters by 2024.
"Though wide release films this year like Love, Simon, Annihilation, Blockers, and Negasonic and Yukio's relationship in Deadpool 2, have raised the bar for LGBTQ images, studios must still do more to ensure that LGBTQ storylines and characters are included in fair and accurate ways," said Megan Townsend, Director of Entertainment Research and Analysis at GLAAD. "We hope that these films are the start of an upward trend of sustained progress, and not just a blip in the radar of next year's SRI."
GLAAD's Studio Responsibility Index reviews films based on GLAAD's "Vito Russo Test", a set of criteria analyzing how LGBTQ characters are situated in a narrative.
For the full report visit: www.glaad.org/sri.
GLAAD found that of the 109 releases from major studios in 2017, only 12.8% (14) of them included characters that are LGBTQ. That's the lowest percentage of LGBTQ-inclusive major studio releases since GLAAD began tracking in 2012. Not one of the 109 releases included a transgender character, a drop from the one transgender character portrayed in 2016, who only served as a punchline.
"At a time when the entertainment industry is holding much needed discussions about inclusion, now is the time to ensure the industry takes meaningful action and incorporates LGBTQ stories and creators as among priorities areas for growing diversity," said Sarah Kate Ellis, GLAAD President and CEO.
20th Century Fox and Universal Pictures both received an 'Insufficient' rating; Paramount Pictures, Sony Entertainment, and Walt Disney received 'Poor' ratings; and Lionsgate Entertainment and Warner Brothers received 'Failing' ratings.
In this year's Studio Responsibility Index (SRI), GLAAD called on the seven major film studios to make sure that 20% of annual major studio releases include LGBTQ characters by 2021, and that 50% of films include LGBTQ characters by 2024.
"Though wide release films this year like Love, Simon, Annihilation, Blockers, and Negasonic and Yukio's relationship in Deadpool 2, have raised the bar for LGBTQ images, studios must still do more to ensure that LGBTQ storylines and characters are included in fair and accurate ways," said Megan Townsend, Director of Entertainment Research and Analysis at GLAAD. "We hope that these films are the start of an upward trend of sustained progress, and not just a blip in the radar of next year's SRI."
GLAAD's Studio Responsibility Index reviews films based on GLAAD's "Vito Russo Test", a set of criteria analyzing how LGBTQ characters are situated in a narrative.
For the full report visit: www.glaad.org/sri.