DEI Departments May Be Closing, But These 40 Hollywood Heavyweights Are Still Agitating for Change (original) (raw)
Clockwise from Top Left: Hiroyuki Sanada, Quinta Brunson, Ava Duvernay, Ron Nyswaner, Lily Gladstone, Taika Waititi, RuPaul Charles Beau Grealy; Austin Hargrave (2); Paul Yem; Katie Yu/FX; Frazer Harrison/Getty Images; Tasos Katopodis/Getty Images
Eva Longoria, RuPaul, Quinta Brunson, Lily Gladstone, Ramy Youssef and others on THR’s Forces for Change power list speak out on increasing inclusion in the industry despite economic and social headwinds.
What a difference four years makes. Back in 2020, companies loudly proclaimed their commitments to DEI via million-dollar pledges, conspicuous hires and black squares on Instagram. These moves now have been walked back — to put it mildly.
That’s why the work of the people comprising _THR_’s Forces for Change is all the more vital. The annual list recognizes industry leaders who actively use their clout and platform to create opportunities in the business for those who are historically excluded — even and especially when it is not in their job description to do so.
This last criterion has grown even more critical as companies shed their DEI-designated employees en masse. “The most powerful DEI agents don’t have it in their title,” says Lionsgate’s Kamala Avila-Salmon, who knows of what she speaks (the head of inclusive content just signed a first-look deal with the studio to transition to producing).
But the point of this list is to demonstrate that making Hollywood more equitable and inclusive can be done by people across the industry, not just specialized departments. Because confronting inequity was even harder this year in the face of economic and political headwinds that served to reinforce the status quo, the 2024 list — vetted through many conversations with advocates engaged in the work — emphasizes recent success stories of opening doors, even when it no longer is in vogue to do so. The good news is that this isn’t a comprehensive tally: We heard a multitude of testimonies about creatives and executives across the industry who are, as the parlance goes, real ones. Perhaps this list will inspire even more to join them.
Profiles by Seth Abramovitch, Gary Baum, Kirsten Chuba, Aaron Couch, Kevin Dolak, Mesfin Fekadu, Nicole Fell, Lily Ford, Ryan Gajewski, Mia Galuppo, James Hibberd, Caitlin Huston, Katie Kilkenny, Borys Kit, Pamela McClintock, Mikey O’Connell, Zoe G. Phillips, Christy Piña, Richard Porter, Seija Rankin, Rebecca Sun, Carly Thomas and Etan Vlessing.
Cris Abrego and Eva Longoria
Hyphenate Media Group
Two of the most impactful Latinos in Hollywood teamed up last fall to launch industry incubator Hyphenate, which invests in multicultural multihyphenates like its chief creative officer Longoria, who spoke at the Democratic National Convention before flying abroad to shoot the CNN series Eva Longoria: Searching for Spain. Meanwhile, Hyphenate’s CEO Abrego continues to serve as chair of both Banijay Americas and the Television Academy.
Jairo Alvarado, Theresa Kang and Phillip Sun
Managers
This trio had reputations as leaders in inclusion even before founding their own management/production companies to embody those principles. This year, Alvarado (who launched Redefine Entertainment with Max Goldfarb and Tony Gil) saw client Lulu Wang release Amazon’s Expats; Blue Marble’s Kang is an EP on Pachinko and reps Alfonso Cuarón; while Sun’s M88 added Simu Liu and Winston Duke to a roster that includes fellow listmakers Ryan Coogler, Taraji P. Henson and Carlos López Estrada, as well as Michael B. Jordan and Issa Lopez.
How to stop the DEI backslide
Kang: “Expanding the definition of ‘bankable’ actors, especially in today’s global market.”
DEI is performative when …
Sun: “Words are just words. In my experience, it’s performative when those words are met with a limited budget to turn the ideas of your existence into a reality.”
My Force for Change nominee
Alvarado: “Dan Lin.”
Kamala Avila-Salmon
Lionsgate
It’s rare for a DEI exec to have full script-to-screen access and be on the greenlight committee; even rarer for one to become a producer, as she did in just signing a first-look deal. “She actually has power and fought for it,” says Myles Worthington, CEO of marketing agency Worthi. Adds Lionsgate executive vp Charlotte Koh, “Kamala is good at saying things that engender conversation and trust, asking people to consider the solutions.”
I knew the DEI backslide had begun when …
“ ‘Woke’ became a pejorative. Execs once worried about not doing enough to challenge racism are now terrified of ‘offending the other side.’ ”
Quinta Brunson
Writer-producer-actor
The Emmy winner is throwing her star power behind her former BuzzFeed colleague Justin Tan’s feature directorial debut, Universal’s Par for the Course, co-writing the script with him and toplining opposite Stephanie Hsu.
Karey Burke
20th Television
As president of the Disney-owned studio, Burke is working to make all of 20th’s behind-the-camera spaces accessible and teamed with Inevitable Foundation and Disability Belongs to take generals with disabled writers. “None of this would have happened without Karey,” says Inevitable’s Richie Siegel. The studio also has platformed disabled employees to share on working in the industry with the rest of the company.
Someone doing the work “Tim McNeal has been leading our writing and directing programs for nearly two decades, launching the careers of countless storytellers.”
Kathryn Busby
Starz
The original programming president continues to go to bat for series that foreground stories by and about women and underrepresented groups: the Power franchise, the acclaimed P-Valley, the dramas Outlander and The Serpent Queen and the upcoming Three Women, Hunting Wives and Sweetpea.
I knew the DEI backslide had begun when … “Four top DEI executives lost their jobs during a horrible 10-day stretch in 2023.”
Gloria Calderón Kellett
Writer-producer
This year, the veteran showrunner and vocal advocate for Hollywood Latinos stepped beyond the screen to disrupt the theater world with One of the Good Ones, becoming the first Latine playwright commissioned by the 100-year-old Pasadena Playhouse.
DEI is performative when … “Companies make announcements for development that never become series.”
RuPaul Charles
Producer-host
“Drag queens save the world” was the season nine tagline for RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars, on which fan faves competed for charities like the National Black Justice Coalition and Trans Lifeline, and Vice President Kamala Harris made a finale cameo to remind viewers to vote. It was just the latest example of how the queen of glam has offered a glittery platform to matters of social justice while mainstreaming queer culture.
Jon M. Chu
Director
The Wicked helmer is famous for his advocacy of Asian American representation, but he’s quietly a change agent for other identities as well. “Working for Jon changed my life,” says director Ashley Eakin, who lives with a rare bone condition and got her industry start as Chu’s assistant. “When Jon hired a person with a visible disability, he was telling people I was valuable, differences and all. Over the years, Jon has given feedback on my projects and is a producer on a show we have in development at 20th and FX.”
Ryan Coogler
Director-Producer-writer
While his Proximity Media continues to produce diverse content, the filmmaker put his money where his heart is and created jobs for a predominantly POC cast and key crewmembers on his upcoming untitled supernatural horror movie for Warner Bros.
Ayo Davis
Disney Branded Television
As president, Davis determines how young viewers see diversity in the company’s iconic kids and family content. Characters of color have been spotlighted in original stories (Primos) and beloved IP (Disney Junior’s Ariel, Marvel’s Moon Girl and Devil Dinosaur).
My Force for Change “Producer Reuben Cannon took me under his wing and empowered me to follow my instincts.”
Ava DuVernay
Director-writer-producer
The filmmaker and her Array Filmworks team pioneered a new model of financing by funding Origin through nonprofit investors (e.g., Ford Foundation). In keeping with the teachings of her source material, Isabel Wilkerson’s book Caste, she did away with hierarchies on set, such as A/B-nomenclatured units and numbered cameras.
Megan Ellison
Annapurna
Nimona, an animated feature with LGBTQ themes, was close to being shelved due to Disney’s cost-cutting measures when Ellison acquired the film. “I needed this movie when I was a kid,” the producer told THR earlier this year. Nimona landed at Netflix and earned an Oscar nomination.
Surian Fletcher-Jones
Working Title TV
We Are Lady Parts creator Nida Manzoor credits her EP for saying yes to her Muslim women punk rock comedy, but Fletcher-Jones says that the impact is mutual. “It took me 20 years in the industry to get commissioned to make a show with a woman the same color as me,” she says. “Nida has taught me about standing in my power and taking up space as a female, diverse creative.”
I knew the DEI backslide had begun when … “Powerful people started claiming they were victims of ‘cancel culture’ rather than people who never had voices in media/pop culture in the first place.”
Lily Gladstone
Actor
The Oscar nominee has used her rising profile to advocate for Native Americans. During last year’s awards campaign, she often sported red carpet looks by Native designers and used her _Killers of the Flower Moon_-sized platform to draw attention to her indie Fancy Dance, from first-time Native feature director Erica Tremblay. Thanks in part to Gladstone’s advocacy, the film found a distributor after over a year of searching.
Sterlin Harjo
Writer-producer
The groundbreaking showrunner of Reservation Dogs — with the first all-Indigenous writers room and director lineup in TV history — hasn’t been resting on his Emmy-nominated laurels. Since the FX series ended last fall, Harjo has been at work on a Tulsa-set noir pilot featuring Indigenous actors Siena East, Kaniehtiio Horn and Cody Lightning.
Taraji P. Henson
Actor
The Color Purple star, now starring in Peacock’s Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, went viral in December with her tearful remarks calling out Hollywood’s pay inequality for Black women. “My choice will always be to speak up about injustices,” she tells THR. “Many other women have spoken up before me. … I’m glad the message was being heard finally.”
How do you define DEI? “Definitely Earned It.”
Eugene Hernandez, Michelle Satter and Kim Yutani
Sundance
When it comes to building a talent pipeline, the Sundance Institute — whose Artist Programs are overseen by founding senior director Satter — is unparalleled in its success rate, having long offered underrepresented filmmakers a springboard via direct industry access. Fellow Forces for Change like Ryan Coogler and Taika Waititi made their feature debuts at the festival (where Hernandez just completed his first outing as director and Yutani long has overseen programming) with projects developed in the directing and screenwriting labs.
First time I felt represented in media/pop culture
Hernandez: “The first screening of El Mariachi, Robert Rodriguez’s low-budget DIY debut feature, at Sundance in 1993.”
My Force for Change nominee
Yutani: “Christina Chou at CAA has an extraordinary eye for talent — we’ve shown many of her clients’ work at Sundance — and she approaches her work with intentionality, intelligence and grace.”
Someone who has done the work
Satter: “My son Michael Latt, who passed this year. Michael harnessed the power of storytelling to create nationwide impact initiatives and bring love, hope and healing to communities.”
Cord Jefferson
Writer-director
The filmmaker of American Fiction, which won an Oscar for best adapted screenplay, used his acceptance speech to urge “a risk-averse industry” to take more chances on fresh voices — people like him, “a 40-year-old Black guy who’d never directed anything before.” He previously teamed with the WGA to start a program that mentors writers of color as they develop pilots.
DEI is performative when … “They’ve got women and minorities all over Instagram and none in their C-suite.”
Matthew Johnson, Tara Kole, Nina Shaw
Lawyers
These three helped launch their own firms based on their principles. “Women, people of color and our allies in the fight for equity were the founders of the law firm, and that informs everything we do and everything we are,” says legal titan Shaw, while Johnson and Kole are two of the founding partners of JSSK, launched in 2022 with a strong focus on inclusivity as well as civic engagement and advocacy work throughout its ranks.
How to break the cycle of DEI backlash
Johnson: “We invest the necessary time, energy and resources to empower our whole team to succeed.”
Kole: “We continue to believe that different ideas, perspectives and backgrounds create a stronger workforce and a more creative work environment.”
My Force for Change nominee
Shaw: “I would like to raise an earlier example. Producer Bruce Paltrow, probably better known now as the father of Gwyneth, supported the early careers of Emmy winners Thomas Carter, Eric Laneuville and Kevin Hooks when there were few episodic directors of color. Paltrow didn’t need a company directive to do the right thing. This shouldn’t be so hard.”
Charles D. King and Stacey Walker King
MACRO
DEI concerns may be first to go in belt-tightening times, but last year, CEO Charles raised $90 million in a fund led by BlackRock for his multicultural firm, whose latest film, Freaky Tales, premiered in January at Sundance. Chief brand officer and wife Stacey launched Macro’s annual HBCU summit at Howard and crafts campaigns for TikTok’s grants for Black and Latino creatives.
My Force for Change nominee
Stacey: “Dr. Stacy Smith at USC Annenberg. One of my favorite things is to cite her team’s impeccable, irrefutable research findings.”
People from dominant culture should be asked
Charles: “People of color are the global new majority so not sure I follow the question.”
Niija Kuykendall
Netflix
The vp film manages faith-based, young adult and holiday features for the streamer. Her slate includes Tyler Perry’s The Six Triple Eight, starring Kerry Washington in the story of the only Women’s Army Corps unit of color during World War II, and first-time director Malcolm Washington’s The Piano Lesson, an August Wilson play adaptation.
DEI is performative when … “There is no investment in making, distributing and marketing multicultural storytelling.”
Franklin Leonard
The Black List
The CEO offered his platform to partners GLAAD, CAPE, MPAC Hollywood Bureau, The Salon, the Latin Tracking Board, NALIP, 1in4 Coalition and the WGA Disabled Writers Committee to compile lists boosting exposure for the best unproduced screenplays penned by writers from specific historically excluded backgrounds. And, recently, Leonard is looking to disrupt the publishing world as well, expanding to the Black List for Fiction.
People from dominant culture should be asked “How has being a member of the dominant culture affected your career trajectory? Would you have your job if you weren’t a member of the dominant culture?”
**Someone (say, a presidential candidate) asks you to define DEI “The pursuit of true meritocracy and its attendant financial upside in a world historically defined by the legacy of colonialism, patriarchy, heteronormativity and anti-disability bias and the financial losses that come with them.”
Carlos López Estrada
Producer-director
“There are so many barriers to entry for emerging filmmakers that often the only reasonable option is to give up. But sometimes all it takes is one person to say, ‘I’m here for you,’ to keep you going,” says Dìdi director Sean Wang of his producer, whose Antigravity Academy banner includes an incubator for on-the-rise filmmakers with diverse perspectives. “Carlos was that person for me. I know firsthand what kind of a difference that makes.”
My Forces for Change “Julie Ann Crommett and Aisha Rupasingha at Disney supercharged me with conviction to present new ideas as the first director of color in Disney Animation’s 100-year-old history.”
People from dominant culture should be asked “Can you commit to mentoring at least one early-career professional from an underrepresented group in the next 12 months? And mentoring doesn’t mean having coffee with them once every four months.”
López Estrada produced Dìdi, directed by Sean Wang (far left) Michael Loccisano/Getty Images
Phil Lord
Producer-writer-director
When not producing hits like the Spider-Verse franchise, the Cuban American co-chairs the DGA Diversity Committee and serves on the LatinX in Animation board, in the Academy Latino/a Affinity Group and as an Academy Gold mentor.
First time I felt represented in pop culture “Seeing the sitcom ¿Qué Pasa, USA? on PBS in 1980.”
Alana Mayo
Orion Pictures
Without the Amazon MGM Studios division head, the five-time Oscar-nominated feature American Fiction never would have been made, according to star Jeffrey Wright. Adds director Cord Jefferson, “Alana Mayo is bold and brilliant but completely unshowy — a wonderful and rare mix of traits.”
Glen Mazzara
Writer-producer
“Glen’s spent over a decade advocating for writers — especially historically disadvantaged writers — through mentorship and meeting with studio gatekeepers one by one to dismantle long-standing discriminatory hiring practices,” says fellow TV writer Liz Alper. “His impact has fundamentally shifted a stubborn industry toward a more equitable future.”
Define DEI for, say, a presidential candidate “Donald, Everyone’s Included.”
Ron Nyswaner
Writer-producer
From 1993’s groundbreaking Philadelphia, which changed the national conversation about HIV/AIDS, to last year’s Fellow Travelers, featuring four out actors and four out EPs — the screenwriter has been fearless in an industry that didn’t always welcome LGBTQ narratives. Next up: a TV series about a “gay couple in Venice pulling a little scam.”
Someone doing the work “Matt Bomer, who made the decision years ago to live openly as a gay man, in a loving relationship, raising children, while playing gay and straight characters. He’s a pioneer — who happens to be one of our best actors.”
Will Packer
Producer
He’s spent decades reminding Hollywood that Black filmmaking is a reliable commercial powerhouse, from Stomp the Yard and Think Like a Man to Girls Trip. The Sept. 5 premiere of his limited series Fight Night: The Million Dollar Heist, a showcase for top talent — including Kevin Hart and Taraji P. Henson — which debuted on Peacock as the most watched premiere in the platform’s history.
My Forces for Change “Filmmakers Warrington and Reginald Hudlin gave me my first industry internship.”
Elliot Page
Actor-producer
Beyond giving audiences the opportunity to witness an authentic character transition via The Umbrella Academy, the actor is using his Pageboy Productions to elevate queer and trans narratives, like the cheer drama Backspot, the doc Any Other Way: The Jackie Shane Story and Close to You, starring Page as a man returning home for the first time since his transition.
His Pageboy Productions creates dramas and documentaries that tell trans and queer stories. Michael Buckner/Variety/Getty Images
Jordan Peele
Producer-director-writer
After the sociopolitical content in Dev Patel’s India-set directorial debut, Monkey Man, held up its release at Netflix, Hollywood’s social horror master rescued the film, securing it a theatrical run under his Monkeypaw Productions deal at Universal.
Tyler Perry
Producer-director-writer
Meagan Good and Cory Hardrict got the biggest paydays of their careers as the leads of the mogul’s latest film, Divorce in the Black. “He makes you feel valued and seen,” Good has said about Perry. “He was like, ‘You deserve this.’ ”
Issa Rae
Actor-writer-producer
President Barbie said the quiet part out loud when she called out Hollywood executives’ dwindling promises to support inclusion in her Time cover interview in February. But she also puts her words to action through her ColorCreative firm and its Find Your People program for historically excluded filmmakers.
Shonda Rhimes
Producer-writer
The prolific producer personally showran last summer’s Bridgerton prequel series, Queen Charlotte, whose romance centered on caregiving and mental illness. In addition to her impact on onscreen diversification through Shondaland’s vast portfolio of shows, she also maintains several inclusive Hollywood initiatives.
Hiroyuki Sanada
Actor-producer
The veteran actor has consistently worked behind the scenes to ensure greater authenticity in Hollywood’s portrayals of Japanese culture. On Shogun, where he served as a producer, he helped recruit the show’s Japanese crew and was on set every day (even when he wasn’t shooting). The result: 25 Emmy noms and a second-season order for the once-limited series.
My Force for Change “Theater producer Thelma Holt told me, ‘You are an actor before you are Japanese.’ I decided to join the Royal Shakespeare Company and after that started to choose international projects.”
Sanjay Sharma
Marginal MediaWorks
“We’ve been chipping away as champions of commercial films on responsible budgets from outsider voices,” says Sharma of Marginal, which made and sold 10 movies in four years and oversees TV shows, docs and international co-productions. “This is actually the way to effect change: by expanding the pipeline and commercializing POC work.”
What people from dominant culture should ask themselves “What music do your kids listen to, what foods do you love, what streetwear brands do you like, what slang do you use, do you do yoga? You can thank marginalized peoples for most of the things that are now cool — from hip-hop and K-pop, to chai and chili crisp. To disengage from what you might frame as DEI is in fact to disengage with the global reality, from American youth to every global growth market.”
The moment I knew the DEI backlash had begun, and how to break the cycle “Honestly, there was not much of a movement to lash back against. As of 2020, out of 100 or so producer overall or first-look deals, only about five were not-major talent POC. The ‘DEI’ window was during the worst years in recent entertainment history: two years of COVID, a year of double strikes. A studio exec told me, ‘We don’t have the luxury of DEI anymore.’ The way we break the cycle is by doing, not talking. We all need to keep building momentum, outside the industry incumbents.”
Taika Waititi
Producer-director-writer
An Asian American extra pushing back on tropes (Interior: Chinatown), the American Samoa soccer team (Next Goal Wins) and a gay character foregrounded as an unlikely hero (What We Do in the Shadows): Waititi specializes in spotlighting traditionally sidelined characters, including those who share his Maori and Indigenous heritage (for example, on the Emmy-nominated Reservation Dogs, which he co-created). Next up is an adaptation of Percival Everett’s James, which retells Huckleberry Finn’s adventures from his enslaved companion’s perspective.
Lulu Wang
Writer-director
The Expats showrunner’s adaptation included an original episode highlighting domestic workers and protestors and racebending two main characters, thereby giving two veteran actors of color a long-deserved showcase. “I’ve seen many projects where the diverse characters are primarily there for exposition,” says one of those actors, Sarayu Blue. “Lulu is a rare gem who is painstakingly intentional about bringing audiences dimensional human beings who happen to be diverse.”
Kerry Washington
Actor-producer
Her Simpson Street banner illuminates systemic issues facing many Black families, with the dramedy UnPrisoned, the legal drama Reasonable Doubt and the documentary Daughters, which follows four girls as they prep for a daddy-daughter dance with their incarcerated fathers. Next, she stars in and produces Tyler Perry’s feature The Six Triple Eight.
My Force for Change “Tyler cast me in For Colored Girls at a time when I was feeling a bit lost in my creative evolution. Now, over a decade later, he’s invited me to produce with him.”
Janet Yang
Producer
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences president — re-elected in August for a third term in part for her leadership in rallying the organization’s inclusion efforts — long has been a pillar of Asian Hollywood. And she continues to personally champion emerging talent, inviting unsigned musical artists to her home to mingle and perform alongside global pop stars at her annual birthday gathering.
First time I felt represented in media/pop culture “Chinese Olympic gold medalist in gymnastics Li Ning in 1984. It was the first time a positive image of a Chinese person appeared on American primetime TV.”
Ramy Youssef
Actor-writer-producer
On top of giving voice and representation to Muslim Americans, the Golden Globe winner — who has raised funds for Palestinians struggling through the war in Gaza — has quietly become a rare champion of disabled performers. His high school classmate Steve Way, who was born with muscular dystrophy, recurred on Ramy and also opened his latest Max stand-up special, More Feelings.
My nominees for Forces for Change “The Pillars Fund and the Inevitable Foundation. Working with them has always elevated the work I do.”
Youssef (right) has provided industry opportunities for both Muslim Americans and disabled performers, shown here with Steve Way (left) and Bella Hadid on the set of Ramy. Jon Pack/Hulu
Kumail Nanjiani to Keynote THR Lunch
Last year’s Raising Our Voices event had keynote speaker Taika Waititi joking that ChatGPT can enumerate Hollywood’s diversity challenges within seconds but that “there’s a lot of people in this town who still don’t get it and still kind of refuse to get it and want to be told.” Mission accepted, as _THR_’s third annual DEI event kicks off Sept. 11, featuring Kumail Nanjiani as keynote speaker, with Annette Bening moderating a gender-equity discussion and _Baby Reindeer_’s Nava Mau participating in a transvisibility panel. The Spago Beverly Hills luncheon is sponsored by ACLU, East West Bank and Starz’s #TakeTheLead, the latter of which will be part of a presentation led by the network’s Kathryn Busby, included on this year’s Forces for Change list.
Leading Change THR co-editor-in-chief Nekesa Mumbi Moody at the Audrey Irmas Pavilion event in 2023. Michael Kovac/The Hollywood Reporter/Getty Images
This story appeared in the Sept. 11 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.
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