DIVERSITY IN MOVIES 1
Diversity in movies: It is about time
Throughout movie history, there has not been much diversity. Most movies such as The
Godfather, starring Marlon Brando and Gone With the Wind, starring Clark Gable are considered
some of the greatest movies of all time, and they star white males. Many other races and women
feel like they have not been represented enough in movies. Unfortunately, when they are
represented in movies, it is very often in a stereotypical way. For example, in Snow White and
the Seven Dwarves, even though Snow White is the lead role, she ends up being a damsel in
distress waiting for her “prince to come.” This is seen in almost all Disney princess movies and
other movies with women in leading roles. Nowadays, there are movies like Wonder Woman and
Moana where the woman does not need to be saved by anyone and can save herself. In addition,
Black people almost never have leading roles and often are cast as characters of inferior status.
For instance, Movies like Song of the South and Show Boat both had their lead black characters
as slaves.
However, we now have more and more movies promoting diversity, such as Hidden
Figures and Get Out, which were major box office successes. Hollywood and the film industry
have come a long way and are taking a step forward with accepting more diverse casts in
movies. Marvel’s Black Panther, which came out in 2018, is one such example. After first
appearing in Captain America: Civil War, T’Challa got greenlit for his own movie. This will be
the first comic book-based movie featuring a Black man as the lead character in over 20 years,
Blade being the first, starring Wesley Snipes.
How minorities and various groups of people are portrayed in movies plays an important
role in shaping people’s perception of diversity and views towards others. In fact, movies and
media are what reinforce stereotypes (Brown, 2015). Many studies have shown that the influence
This part is
the author’s
Intro. You
can use your
Research
Proposal to
create Intro.
More
instructions
on this will
be given in
class
DIVERSITY IN MOVIES 2
of media has a profound impact on people’s perception of certain ethnic and gender groups, often
resulting in creating racial bias and stereotypes (Munoz, 2014; Palletino, 2015). In fact, in the
past and even now, misrepresentation of minorities has been and still is a prevalent phenomenon.
It is therefore imperative that we start having a more open conversation on this important issue,
which affects people of all races, colors, gender, sexual orientations, and to raise awareness so
that people can learn to appreciate inclusivity and diversity more.
Literature Review
Misrepresentation and Underrepresentation of Minority Communities in Movies
Recent years have seen diverse groups of people become better represented in movies
Center ‘Literature
Review’ and boldface
Create a
heading like
this. Flush left,
bold face,
