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2020

As of spring 2020:

There are almost 2 male reviewers for every 1 female reviewer. Men comprise 65% and women 35% of all film reviewers.
Men wrote 66% and women 34% of reviews.
Male reviewers outnumber female reviewers in every job title category. Men comprise 83% and women 17% of film critics. Men account for 70% and women 30% of staff writers.
With the exception of radio and television, male reviewers outnumber female reviewers in every type of media outlet. Women comprise 58% and men 42% of individuals reviewing for radio and television. However, men account for 69% and women 31% of those reviewing for newspapers, news websites, and wire services.
Men comprise the majority of those writing reviews about films in every genre. Men write 68% and women 32% of reviews about comedies. Men write 69% and women 31% of reviews about action features.
70% of female reviewers are white, 23% are women of color, and 7% have an unknown racial/ethnic identity. 73% of male reviewers are white, 18% are men of color, and 9% have an unknown racial/ethnic identity.
54% of the reviews written by women but 45% of the reviews written by men are about films featuring at least one female protagonist. Conversely, a higher proportion of the reviews written by men than by women are about films with male protagonists. 55% of the reviews written by men but 46% of those written by women are about films with male protagonists.
On average, women reviewers award slightly higher ratings than men to films with female protagonists. Women reviewers award an average rating of 72% and males an average rating of 69% to films with female protagonists. Women reviewers award an average of 73% and men 67% to films with male protagonists.
33% of films reviewed by women are directed by women. By comparison, women directed 14% of films reviewed by male critics. Conversely, 86% of reviews written by men but 67% by women have male directors.
Women comprised 40% and men 60% of “top critics” as designated by Rotten Tomatoes.

Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film

2019

Of the film reviews published in Denmark, Germany, Italy, Poland, Spain, and Sweden from September 2018-October 2019 (and in France from May 2018-April 2019):

On average, 28.5% of reviews were penned by women. Despite slight differences, the numbers remain quite homogenous throughout the panel of countries.
In France it is commonly agreed that there is a “threshold of invisibility” which has been
established at 33%. This symbolic threshold fails to be passed in any of the countries studied. the proportion of reviews written by female critics ranges from 21% to 33%.
The proportion of female critics ranges from 21% to 41% (34% average).
Among the 109 journalists who wrote at least 1 review, 32% are women.
Among 1,417 film reviews, 30% were written by women.
The majority of journalists — 69% for women and 78% for men — who have written a film review in the past 12 months have done so on an occasional basis (less than 12 reviews).
More than one quarter of the male critics wrote only one review between October 2018 and September 2019, against 9% of the female critics.
The average number of reviews per female critics was 12.3 vs 13.5 for male critics.
66% of the total number of reviews were published by General Interest titles, 21% by magazines specializing in Cinema.
Although film reviews were mostly written by men, female critics were more represented in General Interest titles and magazines specializing in Culture.
The number of reviews written by male critics was significantly higher for Action, Crime, Sci-Fi and Thriller Films. Female reviews were more represented in films such as Animation, Drama, and Family Film.
Ratings given by female critics were slightly higher than those given by male critics: 3.2/5 on average for female critics versus 3.1/5 on average for male critics.
The director’s gender had no influence on the ratings.
The majority of women critics feel they have experienced difficulties in their career because of their gender.

Le Collectif 50/50

Of the top-grossing 1,300 films from 2007-2019:

The average Metacritc score for films with only male directors attached (Mean=54.2, Range=9-100) was virtually identical to those with a female director attached (Mean=55.8, Range=22-95). The medians across these two groups were also evaluated, and revealed no difference between male- and female-directed films. Despite receiving the same average critical review, female directors were given substantially less access and opportunity than male directors to helm these highly visible films.
The average Metacritic score was higher for stories directed by women of color (Mean=62.5, Range=44- 89) than those stories directed by white males (Mean=54.2, Range=9-100), white females (Mean=54.3, Range=22-95), or underrepresented males (Mean=54.3, Range=11-99). The medians in the distributions followed the same pattern. Clearly, there is a major disconnect between hiring practices in Hollywood and who has the cinematic heft to carry stories.

Inclusion Initiative

As of spring 2019:

The majority of print, broadcast, and online film reviewers in the U.S. are male. There are approximately 2 male reviewers for every 1 female reviewer. Men comprise 66% and women 34% of all film reviewers.
Men wrote 68% and women 32% of reviews.
Male writers outnumber female writers in every job title category. Men comprise 71% and women 29% of film critics. Men account for 64% and women 36% of freelancers.
In every type of media outlet, male reviewers outnumber female reviewers. Men account for 72% and women 28% of individuals writing for newspapers and wire services. Men comprise 78% and women 22% of reviewers writing for general interest magazines and websites.
Men comprise the majority of those writing reviews about films in every genre. Men write 73% and women 27% of reviews about documentaries. Men write 72% and women 28% of reviews about action features.
54% of the reviews written by women but 38% of the reviews written by men are about films featuring at least one female protagonist.
62% of the reviews written by men but 46% of those written by women are about films with male protagonists.
Women writers award an average rating of 78% and males an average rating of 68% to films with female protagonists.
Women writers award an average of 70% and men 77% to films with male protagonists.
32% of the reviews written by women but 17% written by men have women directors.
83% of the reviews written by men but 68% by women have male directors.
31% of female reviewers but only 16% of male reviewers name female directors in their reviews.
81% of male reviewers but only 66% of female reviewers name male directors in their reviews.
In their reviews, 17% of female critics mention filmographies of female directors and 19% mention filmographies of male directors. However, 16% of male critics mention filmographies of female directors but 28% mention filmographies of male directors in positive ways.

Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film

Of the film reviews published by French critics from May 2018-April 2019:

Among the 611 journalists who wrote at least 1 review between May 2018 and April 2019, 37% are women. In comparison, 47% of all the registered journalists in France are women.
The majority of journalists — 74% for women and 68% for men — who have written
a film review in the past 12 months have done so on an occasional basis — less than 12 reviews.
One-third of the female critics wrote only one review, against one-quarter of the male critics.
The average number of reviews per female critics is 14.3 vs 16.4 for male critics.
47% of the total number of reviews are published by general interest magazines, 26% by magazines specializing in cinema, and 18% by magazines specializing in culture.
A significant majority of the reviews published in magazines specializing in cinema, culture, or general interest magazines are signed by male critics.
A significant majority of reviews published in TV and women’s magazines are signed by female critics.
The number of reviews written by male critics is significantly higher for thrillers, action films, and documentaries.
Female critics’ average rating was 3.5/5, while male critics’ was 3.2/5.
The director’s gender has no influence on the ratings.

Le Collectif 50/50

2018

Of reviewers wrote at least three reviews during March, April, and May 2018:

There are approximately 2 male reviewers for every 1 female reviewer. Men comprise 68% and women 32% of all film reviewers.
Men wrote 71% and women 29% of all reviews.
Male writers outnumber female writers in every job title category. For example, men comprise 77% and women 23% of film critics. Men account for 68% and women 32% of freelancers.
In every type of media outlet, male reviewers dramatically outnumber female reviewers. For example, men account for 70% and women 30% of individuals writing for trade publications such as Variety and The Wrap. Men comprise 68% and women 32% of reviewers writing for newspapers.
Men comprise the majority of those writing reviews about films in every genre. For example, men write 78% and women 22% of reviews about horror films. Men write 70% and women 30% of reviews about dramas.
51% of reviews written by women but 37% of reviews written by men are about films featuring at least one female protagonist. Conversely, a higher proportion of the reviews written by men than by women are about films with exclusively male protagonists. 63% of reviews written by men but 49% of reviews written by women are about films featuring male protagonists only.
83% of all female critics are white, 14% are minorities, and 3% have an unknown racial/ethnic identity. 82% of all male critics are white, 9% are minorities, and 9% have an unknown racial/ethnic identity.
On average, women reviewers award higher ratings than men to films with female protagonists. Women writers award an average rating of 74% and males an average rating of 62% to films with female protagonists. The two sets of critics differ less in their ratings of films with male protagonists. Women writers award an average of 73% and men 70% to films with male protagonists.
A larger proportion of films reviewed by women than by men are directed by women. 25% of films reviewed by women but 10% of films reviewed by men have female directors. Conversely, 90% of films reviewed by men but 75% of films reviewed by women have male directors. It is unclear whether these differences are due to the preferences of writers or assignments made by editors.
When reviewing films directed by women, female writers are more likely than males to mention the name of the director in their reviews and to speak about the director in exclusively positive ways. Female reviewers mention the name of a woman director in 89% of their reviews and males in 81% of their reviews. Further, female critics make only positive comments about those women directors in 52% of their reviews. Men make exclusively positive comments about women directors in 38% of their reviews.

Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film

2017

Of reviews written about the top 300 films 2015-2017:

Reviews by All Critics 2015-2017

78.7% of the reviews were written by men and 21.3% were by women. No meaningful difference was observed by year. Overall, this reflects a gender ratio of 3.7 male reviews to every 1 female review.
83.2% of reviews were from white critics and only 16.8% were underrepresented. These percentages did not deviate over time. The ratio of white critics to underrepresented critics is 4.96 to 1.
The percentage of reviews written by female critics only deviated 2.5 percent between studios (high=Universal, 22.7%; low=Warner Bros., 20.2%). An even smaller window (1.6 percent difference) exists for underrepresented critics, with the high Fox (17.6%) and the low Universal (16%).
The vast majority of all reviews were written by white male critics (65.6%). White female critics (17.6%) reviewed at a slightly higher percentage than their underrepresented male peers (13.1%). Underrepresented females (3.7%) were the least likely of the four identity groups to author reviews aggregated on Rotten Tomatoes.
The ratio of reviews written by white male critics to underrepresented female critics is 17.7 to 1.

Individual Critics

67.1% of the individual critics were male and 32.9% were female. Of those critics with an ascertainable race/ethnicity, 23.2% were underrepresented and 76.8% were white.
Over half of all critics were white males (52.6%), 24.2% were white females, 14.2% were underrepresented males, and 8.9% were underrepresented females.
White male critics wrote substantially more reviews (31.3) than underrepresented male critics (23) or white female critics (18.3).
Underrepresented female critics wrote only a third of the reviews (10.4) of their white male counterparts.

Leading Characters & All Critics

Of the 108 female-driven films, not one featured a gender-balanced critics’ pool. Female critics comprised less than a third of the total pool across 88% of the female-driven films.
Only two films featured female critics of color in double digits. Five percent or less of the total critics’ pool was filled with women of color across 77 female-led movies.
Less than a third of the films with an underrepresented lead had critics’ pools with 20% or more underrepresented reviewers.
White male and underrepresented female critics on average evaluated films with white male leads similarly (white male critics=6.1, underrepresented female critics=6.2). Their average assessment of movies with underrepresented female leads differed, however (white male critics=5.9, underrepresented female critics=6.8).
Underrepresented female critics and white male critics did not differ in their evaluation of films with white male leads — both were nearly equally likely to denote these films as “fresh” (63.9% and 59.9%, respectively). However, when these two groups evaluated films with underrepresented female leads, women of color were more likely to rate these movies as “fresh” (81.1%) than white male critics (59.2%) were.

Reviews by Top Critics

Of the 10,807 reviews penned by Top critics, 77.3% were composed by males and 22.7% by females. This is a gender ratio of 3.4 male Top critics to every 1 female Top critic.
White Top critics (88.2%) wrote substantially more reviews than underrepresented Top critics (11.8%), at a ratio of 7.5 to 1.
Among distributors, Universal (26.8%) was more likely than Paramount (19.8%), Disney (20.8%), and Warner Bros. (20.9%) to have female Top critics review their movies. For underrepresented Top critics, the difference between the highest and lowest company was only 1.8 percentage points.
General News Outlets (34.6%) were significantly more likely to feature female Top critics than all other publications. Entertainment Trades contained the lowest percentage of reviews by female Top critics, with less than 10% of reviews across the three years authored by women. In terms of underrepresented Top critics, General News Outlets (2.3%) were significantly less likely to run reviews by these individuals compared to all other publications. Entertainment Trades were most likely (26%) to feature reviews by underrepresented Top critics.
Women of color were the least likely to work as Top critics each year, with 2.2% of reviews written by these individuals. Underrepresented males composed 9.6% of reviews by Top critics and women wrote 20.5% of the pieces by Top critics. Fully two-thirds (67.7%) of reviews by Top critics had white male authors.

Individual Top Critics

Of the 449 individual Top critics, 64.1% were male and 35.9% were female. This is a ratio of 1.8 male Top critics to every 1 female Top critic.
In terms of race/ethnicity, 85.7% were white and 14.3% were underrepresented, a ratio of 6 white Top critics to every 1 underrepresented Top critic.
White male Top critics represented more than half (57%) of all Top critics, while white female Top critics were less than one-third (28.7%).
Underrepresented male (7.1%) and female (7.1%) Top critics each filled less than 10% of the pool of working Top critics.
Underrepresented male Top critics wrote the highest average number of reviews (32.3), followed by white male Top critics (28.6), white female Top critics (17.2) and underrepresented female Top critics (7.5).

Leading Character & Top Critics

The proportion of female Top reviewers for female-driven films (n=108) were examined. Six of these films (5.5%) had a Top critics’ pool that is at or above proportional representation (50%). Ten additional films had a Top critics’ pool featuring 40% to 48.4% females.
No female-driven films in the sample had proportional representation of women of color as Top critics (20%). Five movies featured 10% or more underrepresented female Top critics (range=10% to 12.5%).
Of the 57 films with actors from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups at the center, none included a Top critics’ pool that reached proportional representation to the U.S. population (roughly 40%).
145 films, or 48.3%, did not have a review by an underrepresented female Top critic.
Nearly half (45.4%) of female-driven films — 49 movies — were not reviewed by an underrepresented female Top critic.
More than one-third (35.1%) of films driven by underrepresented leads did not include one underrepresented female Top critic.

Inclusion Initiative

White critics authored 82% of reviews whereas critics from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups authored 18%. This point statistic is substantially below U.S. Census, where individuals from underrepresented groups clock in at 38.7% of the population
Just over two-thirds of individual critics were males (68.3%) and 31.7% were females. Of those ascertained for race/ethnicity, a full 76.3% of all critics were White and 23.7% were from underrepresented racial/ethnic backgrounds. The majority of all critics were White males (53.2%) followed by White females (23%), underrepresented males (14.8%), and then underrepresented females (8.9%).
Not one of the 100 top movies of 2017 had a gender-balanced critics pool reviewing the movie. This is true of both male and female driven story lines.
Of those movies with female leads, 69.4% had a critics corps with less than 30% women. “Everything, Everything” had the highest percentage of female critics (39.8%). Only two female-driven films featured women of color reviewing in double-digit percentages: 11.8% of critics reviewing “Girls Trip” were women of color and 10.3% of those reviewing “My Little Pony.”
Focusing on movies with underrepresented leads, not one film featured diverse critics at proportional representation to the U.S. Census. The movie that came the closest was “How to Be a Latin Lover,” with 34.6% underrepresented critics and 15.4% women of color. Most films had underrepresented critics accounting for less than a fifth of all reviewers.
Two-thirds of reviews by Top critics were written by White males (67.3%), with less than one-quarter (21.5%) composed by White women, 8.7% by underrepresented males, and a mere 2.5% by underrepresented females. White male critics were writing top film reviews at a rate of nearly 27 times their underrepresented female counterparts.
Of female-driven films, only four (11.1%) reached proportional or over representation of top female reviewers. Put differently, women were half or more of the Top critics for four female-driven movies.

Inclusion Initiative

2016

The vast majority of “top critics” on the Rotten Tomatoes website are men. In spring 2016, women comprised just 27% and men 73% of these individuals.
Regardless of job title, male writers outnumber female writers. Men accounted for 74% and women 26% of individuals working as film critics for media outlets. Men comprised 75% and women 25% of freelancers.
In every type of publication, male reviewers dramatically outnumber female reviewers. For example, males comprised 80% and females 20% of individuals writing about film for trade publications. Men accounted for 71% and women 29% of those writing about film for large U.S. newspapers.
Male writers are more likely than female writers to belong to at least one professional critics organization. 54% of male reviewers and 37% of female reviewers belong to one or more professional organizations, such as the National Society of Film Critics or the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.
Men write more reviews of films in all genres than women. The greatest discrepancy between male and female writers occurred for science fiction features. In spring 2016, men penned 84% and women 16% of reviews in this genre. The greatest parity occurred on romantic comedies and dramas. In this genre, men wrote 57% and women 43% of reviews.
A larger proportion of the films reviewed by women than by men feature female protagonists. 34% of reviews written by women but 24% of reviews written by men featured female protagonists. Conversely, a higher proportion of the reviews written by men than by women had male protagonists exclusively. 76% of reviews written by men but 66% of reviews written by women featured male protagonists only. It is unclear whether these differences are due to the preferences of writers or assignments made by editors.

Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film

2013

2% of the top critics are women.
36% of reviews by female critics vs. 21% of those by male critics spotlighted films with at least one women writer and/or director.
79% of the reviews by men and 6% of the reviews by women spotlighted films exclusively written and/or directed by men.

Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film