Mental Illness Vastly Underrepresented In Popular Films, Study Finds

deadline.com:

A new study has found that people with mental health conditions rarely are depicted in Hollywood’s most popular films and that their depiction “remains one of predominantly white, male, straight and able-bodied characters.”The report, from Dr.

Stacy Smith and the USC Annenberg Inclusion Initiative, found that of the 4,502 speaking or named characters across the 200 top-grossing films of 2019, only 1.5% were depicted with mental health conditions, which was down from 1.7% in 2016.

By contrast, 21% of U.S. adults experience mental illness, according to national population research studies such as the U.S.

National Comorbidity Survey.“Stories can provide a window into different worlds and experiences, but the results of this study demonstrate that mental health is rarely a focal point in popular film,” Smith said. “With the growing need for mental health care in the U.S., and the ongoing concern about well-being, storytellers and creatives are missing critical opportunities to educate audiences.”More than half of the films included in the latest report didn’t feature a single character with a mental health condition, and 30% had only one such character.