THAT'S A WRAP

GLAAD Gives Hollywood A Failing Report Card For Second Year In A Row

Mark Wahlberg in
Mark Wahlberg in Pain And Gain

Last year, GLAAD introduced the first annual Studio Responsibility Index (SRI) — a new report examining the quantity and quality of LGBT representation in mainstream Hollywood film, and the results were less than encouraging.

The second report has just been released, and though time may have marched forward a year, you wouldn’t have guessed it by their findings.

Of the 102 releases from the major studios in 2013, 17 of them included characters identified as lesbian, gay, or bisexual. The majority of these characters were minor roles or cameos, and GLAAD found that many of these were outright defamatory representations in films such as Pain & Gain (from noted big-budget director of homophobic films Michael Bay) and Riddick.

Paramount and Warner Brothers received failing grades for including only minor and offensive portrayals of LGBT people in their 2013 releases. 20th Century Fox, Lionsgate, Universal Pictures, Walt Disney Studios received grades of adequate. Sony Columbia was the first and only studio to receive a good score for several LGBT-inclusive films, including Mortal Instruments: City of Bones, which was the only film tracked in the report that was also nominated for a GLAAD Media Award. No studio has yet received a grade of excellent.

“The lack of substantial LGBT characters in mainstream film, in addition to the outdated humor and stereotypes suggests large Hollywood studios may be doing more harm than good when it comes to worldwide understanding of the LGBT community,” said GLAAD’s CEO and President Sarah Kate Ellis. “These studios have the eyes and ears of millions of audience members, and should reflect the true fabric of our society rather than feed into the hatred and prejudice against LGBT people too often seen around the globe.”

Wonder what they’d say about TV land, where thoughtful LGBT representation in series and TV movies seems to be on the rise.

To view the full report, head here.

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