With Zoe Kravitz making her directorial debut in Blink Twice, discuss the trajectory of female actors into the director role. Feel free to take a historical perspective on this or look at the state of the current industry. With Blink Twice, Zoe Kravitz makes her directorial debut, earning praise after stand-out roles in ‘The Batman and Divergent’. Notably, a BBC review commented the craftmanship of the psychological thriller is “undoubtedly the work of a skilled writer-director, rather than an actor who is having a go at directing.” Peers like Olivia Wilde and Brie Larson have also successfully made this transition in recent years. Having established a name for themselves as talented actresses, they can pivot into new spaces within the industry.
Notably, a BBC review commented the craftmanship of the psychological thriller is “undoubtedly the work of a skilled writer-director, rather than an actor who is having a go at directing.”
The groundwork for the success of these actors-turned-directors was laid by those women who won earned opportunities within a notoriously misogynistic industry. Pioneers like Lee Grant, who debuted in the 1950s and overcome Hollywood blacklisting, paved the way by directing an Oscar-winning documentary in the 1980s. In an interview with Ally Acker, she explains the difficulty of transitioning into this more powerful role in a culture with different societal norms regarding the position of women in the labour force, describing how this juxtaposition created “a very uncomfortable feeling” for her fellow actors “, particularly in that time when no women were directing”. This status quo remained the dominant narrative; until Sofia Coppola’s triumph in 2003, no woman had ever been nominated for Best Director at the Academy Awards.
In these actors’ trajectory into rigorously closed circles, contemporary female directors can bring refreshing perspectives to the industry. Returning to Kravitz, she told the Wall Street Journal that the script was “born out of a lot of the anger and frustration around the lack of conversation about the treatment of women, specifically in industries that have a lot of money in them”. This theme of women speaking truth to oppressive male power is particularly poignant in the case of Emerald Fennell, who portrayed a young Camilla Parker Bowles in ‘The Crown’ and made her feature film directorial debut with ‘Promising Young Woman’ in 2020, a sobering feminist thriller centred around a woman seeking revenge for the abuses inflicted upon her.
Returning to Kravitz, she told the Wall Street Journal that the script was “born out of a lot of the anger and frustration around the lack of conversation about the treatment of women, specifically in industries that have a lot of money in them”.
Likewise, Greta Gerwig’s unprecedented success with Barbie, 2023’s highest-grossing film highlights the presence of an audience eager to engage with media centring empowering voices. Having moved from acting to receiving critical acclaim with her solo debut ‘Lady Bird’, her success was compounded by ‘Little Women’. Both Fennell and Gerwig’s work draws on a wide range of media in their formulation, arguably in ways differing from their male peers. In Little Women, Gerwig uses post-Civil War paintings similar to the mirroring of Edouard Manet’s ‘On the Beach’; a scene depicting the characters in isolation is paralleled in the film when foreshadowing Beth’s death. Likewise, Fennell manipulated the visuals of flowers and girlish clothing in ‘Promising Young Woman’ as “it weaponises femininity”, according to The Independent.
Despite the success of these female directors, the 2024 UCLA Hollywood Diversity Report found that women were still underrepresented, making up only 31 per cent of streaming film directors. But it is clear to see: that the audiences relish the disruption in the industry and will reward them accordingly.
