ALL POSTS
Trailer Watch: Hilarious ‘Ghostbusters’ Assemble and Resolve to Save NYC
The first trailer for the new “Ghostbusters” has finally arrived. Only in Paul Feig’s all-female reboot of the classic 80s comedy franchise would we hear one of the parapsychologists confess...
An Open Letter to DGA President Paris Barclay
As President of the Directors Guild of America, your job is to represent all directors in Hollywood. From what I can tell, you are a working TV director with lots of credits and I’m sure you’re...
Oscar-Winning Doc ‘A Girl in the River’ Shines a Light on Honor Killing
When Louis C.K. flawlessly introduced the Best Documentary, Short Subject category at the Oscars, he said it’s his favorite because “this is the one Academy Award that has the opportunity to...
Casey Wilson to Play a Mayor in ABC Comedy Pilot Directed by Julie Anne Robinson
“Happy Endings” alum Casey Wilson is returning to ABC. The actress will headline the network’s comedy pilot “Hail Mary,” playing Mary Wolf, the overworked, charismatic mayor of a...
Mary Stuart Masterson Wants to Open A Movie Studio in Upstate NY
Mary Stuart Masterson plans to open a movie studio away from the bright lights of New York City and even further from Hollywood. The actress, producer, director and writer, best known for starring in...
Vanessa Williams to Star in VH1 Series Based on Star Jones’ Book
Vanessa Williams is returning to television, and this time around, she’ll be the star of the show. The three-time Emmy nominee will topline VH1’s “Satan’s Sisters,” a scripted series based...
Ellen Page’s ‘Gaycation’ Is a Fascinating, Moving Look at Gay Culture Around the Globe
Do not be fooled by its glib title, “Gaycation” is no mere gay travelogue. The new TV project from out star Ellen Page and her gay best friend Ian Daniel takes them on a journey to visit LGBT...
This Film Description is a Reminder of All That is Wrong in Hollywood
Yesterday I received a press release for the upcoming film “Knight of Cups.” The drama, which opens this weekend, is written and directed by Terrence Malick. He’s one of the dudes who floats a...
Watch: John Oliver and ‘Trapped’ Set the Stage for Historic Supreme Court Case on Abortion
A recent episode of HBO’s “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” tackled insidious abortion laws and their devastating impact on women nationwide. In typical Oliver fashion, the segment was...
Teaser Watch: Edina and Patsy Luxuriate on the Beach in ‘Absolutely Fabulous: The Movie’
Edina (Jennifer Saunders) and Patsy (Joanna Lumley) are coming to the big screen, and a teaser offers a peak at what the tremendously entertaining twosome are up to. A clip promoting “Absolutely...
PBS’s ‘POV’ to Stream Groundbreaking Women Make Movies (WMM) Films for Women’s History Month
PBS series “POV” is spotlighting four influential Women Make Movies (WMM) films in honor of Women’s History Month: Judith Helfand’s “A Healthy Baby Girl,” Annie Goldson and Peter...
Sarah Shahi Cast as Nancy Drew in New CBS Series
Sarah Shahi (“Person of Interest, “Fairly Legal”) has been announced as the star of CBS’s “Drew.” The Texas-born Persian actress will portray iconic detective Nancy Drew in the...
March 2016 Film Preview
March’s female-centric and/or women-directed films spread wide across all genres, ranging from comedies and the return of a cult favorite to suspenseful action flicks by and about women. First to...
Quote of the Day: Amy Pascal Says The System is “Geared for Women to Fail in Films”
In a new interview with Britain’s The Sunday Times Magazine, former Sony co-chairperson Amy Pascal described the lack of opportunities for female directors as “a travesty, a real travesty.”...
Trailer Watch: A Mexican Woman Risks Her Life to Cross the ‘Hostile Border’ to the U.S.
A tense, atmospheric trailer has been released for indie thriller “Hostile Border,” co-directed and written by Kaitlin McLaughlin. “There are people who struggle and people who get what they...
‘Mustang’ Wins Four Cesar Awards
Sadly “Mustang” didn’t come out victorious at the Oscars, but Deniz Gamze Ergüven’s powerful coming-of-age story did pick up an impressive four statuettes at France’s Cesar Awards in Paris...
Guest Post: What I Learned Shadowing on ‘Homeland’
A year ago, I went to a “diversity” lunch at Directors Guild of America in Los Angeles. I was hesitant to attend, because the overwhelming majority of those who currently fill this position are...
The Highs and Lows of Oscar 2016 Weekend
We called the 2015 Oscar nominations “a dark day for women in Hollywood.” Unfortunately that description fits most years, and certainly this one. #OscarsSoWhite rightfully dominated headlines...
Jenna Coleman’s ‘Victoria’ to Take Over ‘Downton Abbey’ Slot on PBS
If you’re looking for the next “Downton Abbey,” which wraps up its sixth and final season this winter, PBS has a suggestion. Next year, the network will air in its Sunday night...
Weekly Update for February 26: Women Centric, Directed and Written Films Playing Near You
Films About Women Opening This Week Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon: Sword of Destiny (select IMAX theaters and streaming on Netflix) In this sequel to “Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon,” four...
UCLA’s Hollywood Diversity Report Demonstrates the Benefits of Inclusive Casting
#OscarsSoWhite is an ugly symptom of an ugly problem that goes deeper than one particular awards show. The third annual Hollywood Diversity Report from the UCLA Bunche Center details just how...
New LA Times Study: Academy Membership Still 91% White, 76% Male
Nine-tenths white, three-quarters male: That’s the current Academy membership, according to a new study by the LA Times. Back in 2012, the Times found that the Academy was 94% white and 77% male,...
Kesha: Some of the Best Reading Picks About Her Case and Its Huge Significance
Kesha’s contractual dispute with Sony has been dominating headlines and sparking much-needed discussions about rape culture, corporate greed and institutional sexism. The bestselling...
In Appreciation of Inkoo Kang
Today is Inkoo Kang’s last day at Women and Hollywood. Our current Managing Editor is moving on to an amazing new gig as Lead Television Critic for MTV News. We’re thrilled about Inkoo’s...
Watch: ‘Eclipsed’ Playwright Danai Gurira Argues for the Need for Female Characters of Color
Judy Greer to Headline Fox Workplace Comedy From Laura Steinel
Just four months after the cancellation of her last show, FX’s “Married,” Greer has found a new starring project. In the unnamed workplace comedy, the talented character actress will play...
Shakespeare’s Sister Initiative Commissions Women-Directed Shorts
Shakespeare’s Sister, an initiative from Film London and the British Council, has commissioned two short films by female filmmakers to honor the 400th anniversary of the Bard’s passing. Lucy...
What You See Isn’t What You Get: February 2016’s VOD and Web Series Picks
February’s picks for VOD features and web series showcase new sides of seemingly familiar protagonists. In “The Skinny,” actress Jessie Kahnweiler plays a fictionalized version of herself to...
The 15 Best Quotes About Working in Hollywood as a Non-Straight White Male
Mindy Kaling, America Ferrera, Eva Longoria, directors Kimberly Peirce and Karyn Kusama and many, many others contributed to a fantastic NY Times feature published yesterday called “What It’s...
Jessica Chastain, Queen Latifah and More Launch Non-Profit Production Company to Tackle Gender Gap
A number of influential Hollywood players — including Jessica Chastain, Queen Latifah and Catherine Hardwicke — have teamed up to form We Do It Together (WDIT), a non-profit production...
20 of Hollywood’s Biggest Male Stars Have Never Worked With a Female Director
Of the top 100 grossing leading men in Hollywood, 20 haven’t worked on a single film with a woman director, Cosmopolitan has revealed. The magazine compiled a list of the big screen’s A-list...
Guest Post: Autism Stories Are Women’s Stories, Too
After decades of struggle, there’s finally emerging awarenessof the value of women sharing our experiences, insights and wisdom throughfilmmaking. But like many others, I know better than to wait...
‘Girls’ is Back, and Trolling the Trolls
HBO’s “Girls” returned for its fifth and penultimate season on Sunday, and there is a telling moment between Jessa (Jemima Kirke) and Hannah (creator Lena Dunham) in one of the early, upcoming...
Trailer Watch: Greta Gerwig Falls Out of Love in Rebecca Miller’s ‘Maggie’s Plan’
A trailer has been released for writer-director Rebecca Miller’s “Maggie’s Plan.” Greta Gerwig’s name is now pretty much synonymous with oddball comedies, but she continuously offers fresh...
The Roles That Win Actresses Oscars (Hint: Wedding Rings Are A Good-Luck Charm)
What kinds of roles do women win Oscars for? To answer that question, Fusion studied the history of the Academy Awards to learn more about the types of performances that Academy members favor....
Demi Moore to Star in Child-Kidnapping TV Drama ’10 Days in the Valley’ From Creator Tassie Cameron
Demi Moore is the latest film actress to find a meaty leading part on TV. In her first major small-screen role in two decades, Moore will star in the child-abduction drama “10 Days in the...
Trailer Watch: Rebecca Ferguson’s Spy Mission is Compromised By Love in ‘Despite the Falling Snow’
Rebecca Ferguson stole the show in “Mission: Impossible — Rogue Nation,” and now the Swedish actress is headlining her own spy story. Ferguson takes the lead in Shamim Sarif’s “Despite...
Justina Machado to Star in Netflix’s Latino ‘One Day at a Time’ Reboot
“Six Feet Under” and “Private Practice” actress Justina Machado will play Penelope, the divorced mother of two at the center of Netflix’s Cuban-American reboot of “One Day at a Time.”...
Watch: “Hello, Academy,” Women and Hollywood’s Annual Oscar Video
Welcome to Oscar Week. In anticipation of the big night on Sunday, Women and Hollywood is proud to share its annual Oscar video. As we all know, it’s been another shitty year (when hasn’t it...
What Does Feminism Mean To You? Your Answer Could Win You $4000 And A Trip to NYC
Feminism means lots of different things to lots of different people: So, what exactly does this particular word mean to you? Your answer could get you $4000, a trip to NYC and a byline on SheKnows....
Black Women in Hollywood Special to Air on OWN
Oprah Winfrey is set to give viewers a peek into Essence’s 9th annual Black Women in Hollywood event. OWN will air a primetime special featuring highlights from the star-studded celebration as well...
Ava DuVernay Signs On To Direct Disney’s ‘A Wrinkle in Time’
“Selma” director Ava DuVernay will helm Disney’s “A Wrinkle in Time,” an adaptation of Madeleine L’Engle’s beloved and bestselling 1963 fantasy novel of the same name. “Frozen”...
Lynn Nottage Wins Blackburn Prize for ‘Sweat,’ Calls Theater “The Last Bastion of Segregation”
Pulitzer Prize-winning American playwright Lynn Nottage can add yet another impressive accolade to her resume: She’s been named the 2016 winner of the Blackburn Prize. Established in 1978, the...
Emma Watson Taking a Year Off From Acting to Focus On Her Feminist Activism
Emma Watson is taking a hiatus from acting to concentrate on her feminist activism. Watson famously enrolled as an undergraduate student at Brown University in 2009 despite her budding film career....
‘Hedda Gabler’ Gets Distribution
Great news for both theater nerds and period drama lovers: Los-Angeles based distributor Vision Films has acquired the worldwide rights for a film adaptation of Henrik Ibsen’s play “Hedda...
Zoe Cassavetes On What Inspired Her to Tell the Story of an Aging Actress in ‘Day Out of Days’
Towards the beginning of Zoe Cassavetes’ “Day Out of Days,” we witness an awkward phone conversation between a former ingenue and her agent: the actress asks, “Don’t you think I’m a...
Amy Adams Signs on to Star and Exec Produce TV Adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s ‘Sharp Objects’
Five-time Oscar nominee Amy Adams may be heading to the small screen. The “Big Eyes” star has signed on to play the lead role in a TV adaptation of Gillian Flynn’s 2006 novel “Sharp...
Berlinale 2016 Women Directors: Meet Chloé Leriche — ‘Before the Streets’
Self-taught, Chloé Leriche has written, directed, edited and produced a number of short films since 2001, working with fiction and video art. Her work has been screened on TV, in museums and at...
Groundbreaking New Research Concludes “Hollywood Still Functions As A Straight, White, Boy’s Club”
With #OscarsSoWhite — and male — just under a week away, USC Annenberg’s Media, Diversity, & Social Change Initiative has released a groundbreaking new study offering a harsh, ugly...
Watch: Critics and Cinephiles Pick Top 20 Films Directed by Women for Fandor Video Essay
Critic and filmmaker Scout Tafoya asked over 50 film writers and cinephiles to name their ten favorite women-directed films. The resulting Fandor video essay counting down the resulting top 20 is a...
Weekly Update for February 19: Women Centric, Directed and Written Films Playing Near You
Films About Women Opening This Week The Witch In this exquisitely made and terrifying new horror film, the age-old concepts of witchcraft, black magic and possession are innovatively brought...