Source page: McKinsey & Company
Commentary
Black talent is last in, first out, and quick to be cut
Diversity & Inclusion | Entertainment
March 26, 2021 – Already underrepresented in the industry, Black actors, writers, directors, and producers are especially vulnerable to market shocks.
To read the article, see “Black representation in film and TV: The challenges and impact of increasing diversity,” March 11, 2021.
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Visual form
Four-panel time-series bar small multiple.
Layout / body structure
The chart lays out four side-by-side panels for acting leads, writers, directors, and producers, each showing annual bars from 2000 through 2019. Reader compares the level and movement within each role over time and then scans across the four panels to see how on-screen and off-screen representation differ.
What is being compared
It compares the share of films with Black talent across four role types over a twenty-year period. The panels cover acting leads, writers, directors, and producers, and each one is benchmarked against the share of the US population that is Black.
Measurement system
The vertical scale is percent, and a horizontal reference line marks the Black share of the US population. Each year is represented by a blue bar, so the chart shows both annual volatility and the longer-run pattern for each role.
Visible structure inside the graphic
All four panels share the same 0 to 100 frame and the same benchmark line, which makes the bars directly comparable. A shaded band around the late-2000s period marks reduced film output, and the persistence of low bars in the writer, director, and producer panels reinforces the off-screen stagnation story.
Main takeaway from the visual
Black talent remains underrepresented over time, especially in off-screen roles, and progress has been limited rather than steadily improving. The acting-leads panel occasionally approaches the population benchmark, but the off-screen panels remain consistently far below it.
Key standout values or extremes
Acting leads fluctuate roughly from the low single digits up into the mid-to-high teens, ending around the low teens by 2019. Writers, directors, and producers mostly stay in the low single digits, with producers and writers particularly sparse and generally well below the population benchmark line of about 13 percent.
Controls / sequence, when applicable
This is a static chart image with no in-chart controls to operate.
Companion media, when applicable
There is no separate companion audio or video; the chart image is the full visual on this page.