No trans characters in major Hollywood movies for 3rd year, report finds

[July 17, 2020]    LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Hollywood increased the numbers of gay and bisexual characters in movies in 2019, but most of them had only fleeting screen time and there were no transgender characters at all, according to a survey released on Thursday.

The Studio Responsibility Index from LGBTQ media advocacy group GLAAD showed that of the 118 films released by the major Hollywood studios in 2019, twenty-two (18.6%) had LGBTQ characters, including films such as "Bombshell," Rocketman," "Judy" and "Booksmart."

It marked a slight increase on 2018 (18.2%) and the highest percentage of gender inclusive films in the eight-year history of the annual GLAAD survey.

GLAAD found zero transgender characters for the third straight year, despite increasing visibility of the trans community on television in shows like "Pose," "Supergirl" and "The L Word."

The group also expressed disappointment at the low profile given to LGBTQ characters in major films last year. Only nine of the 22 inclusive films GLAAD counted had an LGBTQ character with more than 10 minutes of screen time, while more than half of such characters got less than three minutes on screen.

"Despite seeing a record high percentage of LGBTQ films this year, the industry still has a long way to go in terms of fairly and accurately representing the LGBTQ industry," GLAAD Chief Executive Sarah Kate Ellis said in a statement.

(Reporting by Jill Serjeant; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)

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