Marvel Exec Promotes Gender Equality Agenda

Gender inequality has inherently been a part of Hollywood since its inception, and while things [...]

Gender inequality has inherently been a part of Hollywood since its inception, and while things have improved from those early days, it's inarguable that there is still a long way to go in both representation of women behind the scenes and how women are portrayed on screen.

At the most recent Women in Technology luncheon, Marvel Studios executive vice president of physical production Victoria Alonso spoke about the company's shift towards an equal playing field and urged other studios to do the same (via THR).

"We have had gender inequality for some time. It wasn't always talked about .... In the past year, it bubbled up and it's no longer acceptable to women and some men," she said, "Change is needed and hopefully we can make a balanced Hollywood for the next generation."

Alonso expressed frustration with the current Hollywood climate, where it's far too common to see a production team or a writers room made up of mostly if not all males.

"I don't want to be the only [woman] in the room," Alonso added. "Our rooms should be 50/50. If any of you — men or women — can lift [women] up, we'll all be better for it."

That call to action wasn't just targeted at the women in the room either, as the same belief needs to be held by men that having women present only makes the product better and more balanced.

Alonso said, "You are important change makers. When you wonderful men say 'balance is necessary'…you open that door and the product is going to be better [with varied perspectives]."

The superhero genre as a whole has always struggled in this regard, but thanks to fantastic creators like Gail Simone, Marguerite Bennett, Kelly Sue DeConnick, Jody Houser, and a variety of others, fans and company's are realizing that more top tier female creators just means better and more inclusive comics.

The same goes for film, and studios are just now starting to get with the program. The upcoming Wonder Woman from Warner Bros. and Captain Marvel from Marvel Studios are both employing female directors, and shows like Jessica Jones are taking that a few steps further and employing an all female directorial team.

No one is asking for Marvel Studios to make their team all female, but it certainly doesn't need to be predominately male either. There just needs to be a better balance, and that is all Alonso and others like her are striving for.

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