Female Leads Finally Hit Parity With Men in Top-Grossing Films of 2024

For as many major films with male protagonists that were offered in 2024, an equal number featuring female protagonists was also offered — for the first time ever.

According to USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative’s latest report, which assesses gender, race/ethnicity and age of the leading and co-leading actors for each movie from the 1,800 top-grossing films from 2007 to 2024, female leads finally hit parity, at least as far as representation goes.

Per the findings out Tuesday, of the 100 top-grossing films in 2024, 54 featured a girl or woman in a lead or co-lead role. This marks a significant jump up from 2023, where only 30 movies featured a female-identified protagonist.

“This is the first time we can say that gender equality has been reached in top-grossing films,” Dr. Stacy L. Smith, who leads the research brief, said. “In 2024, three of the Top 5 films had a girl or woman in a leading role, as did five of the top 10 films — including the No. 1 film of the year, Disney’s ‘Inside Out 2.'”

“We have always known that female-identified leads would make money,” she continued. “This is not the result of an economic awakening, but is due to a number of different constituencies and efforts — at advocacy groups, at studios, through DEI initiatives — to assert the need for equality on screen.”

Universal Pictures notched the highest percentage of female leads and co-leads, coming in at 66.7%. They were followed by Warner Bros. Pictures at 55.6% and Lionsgate with 54.5%.

Sony Pictures fared the worst, with just 38.5% of its films across the 100 top movies of last year featuring a female lead.

You can read the full study and its findings, here.

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