Consider this your daily dose of “Are you fucking kidding me?!” At the end of last week, a Los Angeles-based agency put up a casting call on Facebook for a new Quentin Tarantino project. The casting call reads: “Casting Whores for Quentin Tarantino project. Caucasian, non-union females, ages 18–35. Western film shoots June 21st-25th in Los Angeles. No highlights, natural eyebrows, natural breasts, natural hair color to be true to the period. Dress sizes 2–8. Please send photo, including sizes.”
We reached out to the casting agency (whom we’ve chosen not to identify, though they have been criticized for inappropriate casting descriptions in the past.) They assured us that while Tarantino is not directing the project, he is producing, and that the use of the word “whores” came directly from the script (which we’ve been told was written and will be directed by a woman).
Putting a casting call out for, or including women in your script with the description of “whores,” is not OK. Nor is asking actresses to submit their photos and information for consideration with the subject line “Whore.” Aside from the fact that there are better words to use if one is looking to cast women who work in the sex industry, this description is actually a typical example of Hollywood sexism, particularly as it pertains to roles for women.
It would’ve been just as easy to have said that the project was looking for actresses to play prostitutes, saloon girls, or brothel workers but the use of the word “whore” to describe these roles is degrading and the fact that casting announcements frequently use the word is indicative of an ongoing problem in the film industry.
Words carry weight, and the word “whore” comes with a lot of baggage.
Though there was one commenter on the post that called the agency out for their wording, the feed was otherwise full of women submitting for the job, highlighting just how tough it is for not only up-and-coming actresses but for established ones as well to get roles that aren’t offensive stereotypes.
Imagine being one of the actresses who sends their photo in for this project. You pick out your nicest head shot, and in the subject line, you have to write “Whore”: this is how you are being asked to identify yourself.
If you find it dubious that this kind of casting call is par for the course, just check out Casting Call: The Project, which draws attention to the frustratingly sexist way women’s roles are often advertised in casting calls. In their video, real actresses read the often cringe-worthy casting calls that are put out for women’s roles. One actress reads, “The role involves a short, sexual activity but nothing to worry about. LOL!” with another adding, “Please only apply if you are of a slender build and performance space is limited.”
Or check out the website Casting Call Woe, which posts real casting descriptions from real agencies, pointing out the offensive wordage used to describe female roles, the limiting physical requirements, and the lack of significant depth of character.
We hope that, going forward, other casting agencies and script writers will learn that words carry meaning and that certain words should be avoided in the future.
