Women in the entertainment industry today are still met with sexism and forced to stand up for themselves and explain to people, to men, why they did something or why their work and opinions are important. This is something that needs to start changing and be taken seriously if we ever hope to succeed and improve our culture and society.
As an actress myself, I have first- hand experience withd this. Through my acting when performing in front of a number of highschools, I’ve seen when an audience cheers on characters that are played by relatively attractive guys who are meant to act in toxic and questionable ways. I can remember how everytime no matter the actions or behavior these male characters are meant to present, audiences leave asking for the guys’ numbers, cheering for them, taking much interest in their acting and their work more than the meaning of what they are trying to show people about their character and why they’re considered toxic. Opposingly, the women during these types of playsis are continually asked questions like if they’re dating anyone in the cast, I first hand have been asked this, including, “where’d you get your jeans?” This just goes to show how women are perceived in this line of work, how we’re not asked the serious questions because we’re not taken seriously.
During the 81st Golden Globe Awards, comedian Jo Koy made a controversial joke during his monologue on live television. “Oppenheimer’ is based on a 721-page Pulitzer Prize-winning book about the Manhattan project, and ‘Barbie’ is on a plastic doll with big boobies!”(The Daily Tar Heel, Emma Culley) This is an exact representation of the climate that many have towards women in the industry. Another instance that comes to mind is when America Ferrera, known as playing Gloria in the 2023 “Barbie” film, a woman who is struggling with her own power, eventually comes into her own. In an article she responded to critics about the content and the power of her are just coming up now and who don’t have words for the culture that they’re being raised in. Also, boys and men who may have never spent any time thinking about feminist theory.” She added that her character Gloria’s remarks “might seem like an oversimplification” for some audiences but went on to note that “entire countries” banned the movie “for a reason.”…“Assuming that everybody is on the same level of knowing and understanding the experience of womanhood is an oversimplification.””(Entertainment Weekly, Jessica Wang) The only way we can hope to change anything in this industry is by asking the serious questions and acknowledging these serious actresses who have worked hard in their careers.
