Thanks to the progress the #MeToo and Times Up movements have made in shining a light on the injustices women in the film industry face, I naively assumed that women would be better represented among this year’s award nominees. I assumed wrong.
The Scarlett Johansson incident was hardly the first time a cisgender actor was criticized for taking a role many believe should have gone to a trans actor. In fact, a pattern of cisgender actors being cast as, and then inevitably critically acclaimed and rewarded for playing, transgender characters has emerged over the past few years.
When we talk about increasing and diversifying female representation in Hollywood, it seems it is women who feel the most pressure, who feel the most responsible, to counterbalance this misrepresentation by giving voices to a wide range of characters of different colors, ages, sexualities, and backgrounds.