“Who are you wearing?”
“Do you have a certain regimen you put yourself through?”
“Were you able to wear undergarments?”
It doesn’t take much brainpower to guess towards whom these absurd questions were asked; the hugely talented and hardworking actresses of Hollywood. Why does the film industry continuously devalue the work of actresses on the red carpet, in their salary and in glamorous award ceremonies. Actresses frequently suffer overt sexism and objectification on the red carpet, and they’ve had enough.
Cate Blanchett was horrified when a camera scanned her body and rightly asked ‘would you do that to a man?’ Scarlet Johansson is fed up of being asked ‘rabbit-food questions’ while her avengers co-star Robert Downey Jr. was asked existential questions. Why is it that Sandra Bullock will exclusively be asked about her appearance whilst male co-stars are interviewed about their talent? In other words: actual pertinent and meaningful questions about acting. The Smart Girls movement launched a new campaign to #askbetterquestions pleading with Hollywood Interviewers to ask questions such as ‘name a woman who inspired you’ or ‘what would you like to achieve in your career?’ as an alternative to inane questions about hair, dresses, and men.
However when the red carpet ends, sexism does not. Women were nominated far less times than men in the 2015 Oscars, in fact while 25 women were nominated 102 men were named. In individual awards for the Score, Directing, Cinematography and Visual Effects, only men were nominated. Emma Watson has complained recently that she had been directed by a man 17 times whilst only being directed by a woman twice. There is no female representation when it comes to Hollywood, it’s like women in film may well as not exist in the eyes of the Oscars. Since 1998 the amount of women in behind the scenes roles has only risen by a meagre 1 per cent. The Woman Media Centre shows that the percentage of women directors in the top 250 films has stayed at 9 per cent since 1998.
Why is it that Sandra Bullock will exclusively be asked about her appearance whilst male co-stars are interviewed about their talent?
Jennifer Lawrence was named the highest payed actress in Hollywood in 2015, having made a massive £52 million after starring in the Hunger Games trilogy and American Hustle, but was actually paid less than her male co-actors. In Hollywood, the highest paid actresses are payed 2½ times less than the best-compensated actors, and if we do the math that means that female actresses are payed 40 cents for every dollar a man will make.
‘I think it’s still completely s**t actually’ said Emma Thompson, and after hearing these facts, I most certainly agree.