Hispanic and Latinos are still being marginalized in popular movies.

Hispanic and Latinos are still being marginalized in popular movies. To coincide with Hispanc Heritage Month, the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative released a new study that analyzed leading and co-leading Hispanic and Latino actors across 1,300 top-grossing films from 2007 to 2019. According to the report, Hispanics/Latinos spend $1.7 trillion as consumers, and account for 25% of movie ticket sales, but the absence of Hispanic and Latino actors and characters is “noticeable.” The research reveals that only 7% of Hispanic/Latino actors filled leading roles—only a slight increase from the 3.5% across the 13-year time frame. While more than half of leading or co-leading actors were girls and women, they still represented only 1.9% of the films. Meanwhile, only 5% percent of leads and co-leads were Latinx, as were 2.2% of all protagonists—and only six Afro-Latinos worked across the 13-year time frame, with three having leading or co-leading roles. Only 5.9% of speaking or named characters were Latino/Hispanic of any race, which showed no change from previous years. The findings were “even more dismal” for Hispanic and Latino LGBTQ+ and characters with disabilities, who were “almost completely absent in films,” with only one film depicting a Hispanic/Latino character who was both gay and had a disability. YPulse’s Representation in Action trend data found that 72% of 13-39-year-old Hispanic consumers wish they saw more people of their race in TV shows and movies. (Variety, Deadline)