Alright, so the title may be a bit misleading, and I’m sure somebody has already written or can write about this topic more eloquently and with better research than myself, but hear me out. This has been bothering me for a while.
Diversity within the super hero cinematic universe has been pretty scant. For purposes of this discussion I am going to lump the Marvel and DC films together, and only look at those made within this century.
X-Men
Blade II
Spider-Man
Hulk
Daredevil
The Punisher
Spider-Man 2
Blade: Trinity
Elektra
Fantastic Four
Batman Begins
X-Men: The Last Stand
Superman Returns
Ghost Rider
Spider-Man 3
Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
Iron Man
The Incredible Hulk
The Dark Knight
Punisher: War Zone
X-Men Origins: Wolverine
Watchmen
Iron Man 2
Jonah Hex
Thor
X-Men: First Class
Captain America: The First Avenger
Green Lantern
Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance
The Avengers
The Dark Knight Rise
The Amazing Spider-Man
Iron Man 3
The Wolverine
Man of Steel
Thor: The Dark World
Captain America: The Winter Soldier
The Amazing Spider-Man 2
X-Men: Days of Future Past
Guardians of the Galaxy
Avengers: Age of Ultron
Ant-Man
Fantastic Four
That’s 43 so far since the year 2000. How many of those featured a minority character? The X-Men films? Sort of. Blade, certainly. How about female leads. Well, again, the X-Men have that whole “ensemble” thing going for them, as do some of the others such as Avengers and Fantastic Four, but no female-centric films other than Elektra (which wasn’t as good as we all hoped, not because it was a female character, but because it just wasn’t what it should have been).
Discounting the ensemble casts but still including the Fantastic Four (because I’m feeling generous) there have been only 6 out of the 43 films with a minority or female lead. And the directors? Only one minority I can see (Ang Lee’s original Hulk) and one by a woman (Punisher: War Zone).
And only NOW we are concerned with minority and female directors? The upcoming Black Panther film has a black director attached to it. The Wonder Woman film has a female director. Wouldn’t it be great if more minority directors were handling the other films? How about a female director for a Batman or Spider-Man film?
Why is it a female director was sought out for a female-led super hero film? A big deal is being made that Wonder Woman is being directed by Patty Jenkins. Ever hear of her? She directed 2003’s Monster. Other than that, little else. It really feels like the studios are pandering to the audience and material with the various choices being made.
Why has it take so long for a woman to get behind the camera of a super hero film? Same question regarding minority directors. It is disappointing we haven’t gotten more women and minority representation in super hero film, both behind and in front of the camera. Don’t get me wrong, I love the Marvel films, but needing a black director for Black Panther smacks of racism.