Representation of women and girls on screen 'flatlined,' says new USC inclusion report

LOS ANGELES (KABC) -- Greta Gerwig's "Barbie" made a big, pink splash centering female storytelling and representation. However, new research paints another not-so rosy picture.

The findings of a new report by the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative could not be more disparate or different from what we see in "Barbie", according to the initiative's founder, Dr. Stacy Smith.

The initiative, which studies portrayals of gender, race/ethnicity, and LGBTQ+ and disability representation, analyzed the the top 100 highest grossing movies each year since 2007 -- the same year the first iPhone was announced, Nancy Pelosi became the first female Speaker of the House, and "The Departed" won the Oscar for Best Picture. What's happened since then?

"There has been no change in the percentage of girls and women on screen," said Smith.

According to the report, in 2022, the percentage of girls and women as speaking characters was 34.6%, compared to roughly 30% in 2007.

"It's not just gender, it's race, ethnicity, LGBTQ+ community and it's people with disabilities," said Smith.

Although the report tracks an uptick in Asian representation, it's not across the board.

"It's primarily Bollywood films and films coming out of Japan that are animated," she said.

In 2022, 2% of films had speaking characters with a disability, and 72% were missing LGBTQ+ characters. Smith stresses the power of representation in TV and film.

"There's a responsibility here," she said. "Hollywood needs to not only do better, but they need to be responsible to the power that they wield."

She credits Netflix as a platform that is heading in the right direction in terms of representation.

"They're over half and pushing towards a company that privileges girls and women and underrepresented racial/ethnic groups on screen and to some degree, behind the camera," she said.

Smith points out that inclusive storytelling resonates. For example, the films with the highest Metacritic scores, meaning an average of reviews by top critics and publications are those directed by women of color, she said.