Earlier this year, Screen Australia’s report on diversity across Australian TV presented some pretty disappointing findings. Looking at 199 dramas that aired nationally between 2011 and 2015, they found that only 18 percent of main characters were from non-Anglo Celtic backgrounds. There were some encouraging stats — the representation of Indigenous actors had risen — but they still reported that the television industry was slow to “take a risk” on non-white talent.
A similar study carried out by GLAAD showed things were a bit better on US primetime television. They found racial diversity on the small screen was moving in the right direction, with 33 percent of regular characters on broadcast TV being played by people of colour. Although they did note “Black women remain significantly underrepresented.”
But with the release of Forbes’ list of the highest-paid actresses this week, many have observed that — at least in highest tiers of the industry — things are slowly becoming more diverse. Among the top 10 earners were Mindy Kaling, Kerry Washington and Priyanka Chopra. In the number one spot was Sofia Vergara, the Colombian-American actress earned US$43 million last year. Forbes comments: “It’s not her role as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett that is responsible for her 66 percent earnings bump over last year. Rather it’s endorsement and licensing deals…that have proven the most fruitful.”
Obviously any list focusing on the wealthy is only representative of a sliver of the community, but the change is encouraging. Especially when compared to Forbes’ recent list of the highest-paid actresses in films. Of the top 10 there, the only non-white stars featured were Fan Bingbing and Deepika Padukone, and the majority of their work was done in the Chinese and Indian film industries.
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Text Wendy Syfret
Image via @PriyankaNetwork