Despite being the largest minority group in the United States, 19% of the population, Latinos are underrepresented in both the media and film and television productions. According to a study by the Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, from the University of California, the data has not improved in the last 16 years. In almost two decades, there have only been 75 Hispanic actors and actresses as protagonists or co-stars in films, which means that the representation of actors of Latin origin in Hollywood is only 4.4%.
The data is more unbalanced considering that in Los Angeles, the Hispanic population already represents 49% of the total. The Academy has publicly announced its intention to be more inclusive and plural, but has not specified what steps it will take to achieve this. Joaquín Castro, president of the Hispanic Caucus, explained on National Public Radio (NPR) that the results are disastrous in terms of equality: “Hollywood continues to be the main institution that defines the image and creates the narrative in American society and Latinos continue being largely invisible in this industry.”
Roles like the one that Greta Gerwig gave to America Ferrera – an American of Honduran origin – in Barbie (2023), and which earned her a nomination for best supporting actress at the Oscars, are celebrated with passion among the Latin community. Ferrera, an Emmy and Golden Globe winner, is a staunch advocate of how inclusive storytelling changes history. At a women’s luncheon organized by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the actress lamented that “according to the numbers, the dominant narrative that the industry presents to the world is that Latinos either do not exist or are poor, criminal immigrants.”
A reality that the study also highlights, pointing out that representations of Hispanics are full of negative stereotypes. 24.4% of the Hispanic protagonists were immigrants and with low income and 57.8% were criminals.
There are not so many actors of Latin origin who are quickly recognizable and remembered for having been successful in Hollywood. Rosie Pérez, Benicio del Toro, Jennifer López, Pedro Pascal, Salma Hayek, Gael García Bernal, Eva Longoria, Zoe Saldana, Sofía Vergara. They are often the same and can almost be counted on the fingers of one hand.
Invisibility does not only affect the actors’ union, but also directors, producers, casting directors and screenwriters of Latin origin. As well as the financing of films led by Latinos, whose cost is around 10 million dollars, in contrast to the 25 million on average granted to the rest of the films.
Since 2016, America Ferrera co-founded a foundation, Harness, through which she practices activism to promote the inclusion of other voices in the prevailing narrative. They recently launched a project called DEAR Hollywood to specifically promote equity and Latino inclusion in the film mecca. The aspiration is to get production leaders to commit to helping, following some basics such as not telling stories about Latinos without Latinos, hiring Latinos for projects that are not Latino, and representing all (and not just some) aspects of life and Latino culture.
The project is also sponsored by Untitled Latinx Project (Unnamed Latino Project), a community of Hispanic creatives who aim to increase visibility on television, radio, cable and other broadcast platforms.
Improving on-screen representation would help promote more equal and fair representation, but could also generate $12 to $18 trillion in new revenue for the film and television industry, according to one study. investigation published in March by the consultancy McKinsey. Commercial successes such as animated films Coconut and Charm (from Disney), or the popular series Jane the Virginare the proof.
