GENDER INEQUALITY IN FILM IS FRUSTRATING: GEENA DAVIS

Actress Geena Davis says she finds it “frustrating” to see gender inequality in the media and film industries.

Davis, who played Thelma Dickinson in 1991 feminist hit “Thelma & Louise”, said that despite playing some iconic female roles, none of the films she has appeared in have made a change, reported The Guardian.

“Having been in some roles that really resonated with women, I became hyper-aware of how women are represented in Hollywood,” Davis said.

“After Thelma & Louise, which was pretty noticed and potent and significant, people were saying ‘This changes everything!There’s going to be so many female buddy movies!’ and nothing changed.

“And then the next movie I did was A League of Their Own, which was a huge hit and all the talk was, ‘Well now, beyond a doubt, women’s sports movies, we’re going to see a wave of them because this was so successful’. That’s balls. It took 10 years until Bend It Like Beckham came out. So, there was no trend whatsoever,” Davis said.

The 59-year-old actress, who founded research organisation The Geena Davis Institute on Gender in Media in 2006, added that she is saddened by how little opportunity women are given to feel “empowered” by female characters.

“The big takeaway I got from Thelma & Louise was the reaction of women who had seen the movie being so profound, so different,” she said.

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