Films with female leads earn more at the box office, study finds
'The perception that it's not good business to have female leads is not true'
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Film fans aren't afraid of watching women take the lead, a new study as found.
Movies with women in leading roles take in more at the box office than their male counterparts, according to a new study by Creative Arts Agency and shift7.
The survey examined 350 top box office films from 2014 to 2017, defining "lead actor" as the first performer credited in official press materials. 105 of them were women. In every category broken down by budget, films with women in the lead role outperformed those starring men.
CAA agent Christy Haubegger told the New York Times: "The perception that it's not good business to have female leads is not true. They're a marketing asset."
"A lot of times in our business there is a lot of bias disguising itself as knowledge," she added, attributing the results of the study to the fact that audiences want to see something new, rather than yet another action, sci-fi or drama film with a majority male, white cast.
This has been proven with the success of major blockbusters including Marvel's Black Panther, the hit comedy Girl's Trip, Disney's Moana and Wonder Woman, which starred Gal Gadot as the eponymous hero and also broke a box office record with the highest ever US opening weekend for a film directed by a woman (Patty Jenkins).
The study also found that, since 2012, no film has passed the $1bn mark without passing the Bechdel test, which means two female characters in the film have a conversation about something other than a man.
The hope is that the study will serve as evidence to encourage Hollywood executives to improve representation in all their films, and create better, more diverse roles.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments