A new report from USC Annenberg’s Inclusion Initiative and ReFrame concludes — yet again — that diversity sells. “The Ticket to Inclusion” analyzed the economic performance of the top 1,200 films released from 2007-2018, and found that, internationally and domestically, films led or co-led by people of color generally net more revenue than those with white leads/co-leads.
Films led or co-led by females or people of color tend to have lower median budgets, less median marketing support, and smaller theatrical distribution — which hinders their financial potential. As such “The Ticket to Inclusion” “asks whether it is the gender and race/ethnicity of leading/co leading characters and/or the support these films receive that contributes to differences in box office revenue,” a press release announced.
Taking production, distribution, and exhibition into account, films with underrepresented leads and co-leads “were significantly more likely to out earn films with white leads and co-leads.” There’s also evidence that films featuring a white lead/co-lead and a large number of characters of color make less money than pics featuring a lead/co-lead of color and a large proportion of other underrepresented characters. Meanwhile, “films with female lead or co-lead characters do not perform significantly differently than those with male lead characters.”
At the domestic box office, the number of theatrical locations, story strength (as quantified by Metacritic), marketing spend, and production costs were the most significant indicators of films’ economic success. As they increased, so did revenue. While the gender of lead/co-lead characters didn’t make much of a difference revenue-wise, “the presence of an underrepresented lead/co-lead was a significant and positive predictor of performance.”
“This is a finding that cannot be ignored and is consistent with what activists, advocates, and artists have been saying for years,” Inclusion Initiative founder Dr. Stacy Smith said. “Stories with underrepresented leads/co-leads make money. Period.”
Internationally, box office success was dictated production costs, marketing, whether or not a movie opened in China, the number of countries releasing a film, and story strength. In this case, titles with higher percentages of female characters “positively influenced revenue, while a greater proportion of characters from underrepresented racial/ethnic groups was associated with a decrease in earnings.” However, the gender and race of leads/co-leads “did not significantly predict earnings.”
Across the domestic and international box offices, films with a high percentage (at least 81 percent) of characters of color and led/co-led by an actor of color “were associated with the greatest international revenue.” Conversely, films led/co-led by white characters and featuring a high percentage (at least 81 percent) of characters of color generated the lowest revenue. “This finding suggests audiences respond positively to authentic storytelling about diverse communities, and are less inclined toward inauthentic films,” the press release argues.
“These results contradict longstanding beliefs about the economic viability of underrepresented leads overseas,” Smith said. “Instead, the findings demonstrate that bias and exclusionary production and marketing practices are driving decision-making about leading roles rather than data regarding return on investment.”
When studying the economic performance of films starring women of color, “The Ticket to Inclusion” found that, domestically and internationally, these titles had the lowest median production costs and median marketing spend. They were also released in fewer international territories than those headlined by white men, white women, and men of color. In fact, just three movies with a single underrepresented female lead opened in China between 2007-2018. During the same timeframe, 48 movies starring white women opened, as did 24 toplined by men of color and 174 featuring white male leads. “The number of movies with underrepresented female leads distributed in Japan, South Korea, and India were equally problematic.”
“Films with women of color as the lead are not only the least likely to be released, but the least likely to be supported by producers and distributors,” Smith explained. “We know the factors that increase the likelihood that a film will be financially successful, and movies with women of color in the lead are systematically disadvantaged in these areas. We need studios to change the way they do business when it comes to supporting these films.”
ReFrame co-founders Cathy Schulman and Keri Putnam vowed that their organization, a Hollywood inclusion program, would use “The Ticket to Inclusion” research to update its standards for diverse hiring and mitigating bias, “so that studios and production companies do not inadvertently underfund movies and shows.”
ReFrame Director Alison Emilio also used the study as an opportunity to launch #leveltheplayingfield, calling on the industry to “to level the playing field by providing the same production and marketing support to all films (of similar genre) without regard to gender or race/ethnicity.”
