Distribution of movie directors in the U.S. 2011-2021, by gender

In 2021, women accounted for roughly 22 percent of all movie directors in the United States. This figure marked an increase of about one percent compared to the previous year and the highest share of female directors recorded in the past decade.

Women remain unseen behind the scenes

Even though there has been some visible progress over the past few years, diversity remains a hotly contested issue in Hollywood and the entire U.S. entertainment business. The share of female movie writers, for example, still only stood at 33 percent in 2021 despite having increased for several years. Not only that, but a recent ranking of the 20 highest-grossing film directors of all time also revealed that all top-earning directors are male, highlighting the firm financial gap between male and female professionals in the industry. Overall, women only comprised 25 percent of all behind-the-scenes roles in Hollywood in 2021.

Representation on camera

The gender distribution of lead actors in movies has become much more balanced in recent years. In 2021, for example, women accounted for roughly 47 percent of film leads in the U.S., nearly double the share they had reached in 2011. The latest reports also indicated that women and people of color have made significant gains during the past decade in terms of on-screen employment. Both groups have approached or even surpassed proportionate representation compared to U.S. demographic data. That said, on-screen presence does not automatically imply inclusion or guarantee the appropriate portrayal of diverse groups on TV and the big screen.