Home > Research > Publications & Outputs > The Hollywood Gender Gap

Links

Text available via DOI:

View graph of relations

The Hollywood Gender Gap: The Role of Action Films

Research output: Contribution to Journal/MagazineJournal articlepeer-review

E-pub ahead of print
<mark>Journal publication date</mark>3/07/2024
<mark>Journal</mark>Journal of Cultural Economics
Publication StatusE-pub ahead of print
Early online date3/07/24
<mark>Original language</mark>English

Abstract

AbstractWe estimate gender earnings differentials among Hollywood stars. While this market should be particularly efficient in translating productivity into earnings, we demonstrate an unexplained female earnings gap of over two million dollars a film. Critically, we show that action films drive this gap. Our movie fixed effects estimate a much larger-million-dollar gap among action movies and a smaller statistically insignificant gap among other genres. Within the other genres, the one significant earnings gap is among stars older than 50. We argue that these patterns could reflect “consumer discrimination” but also raise other possibilities.