Yahoo Lifestyle Russell Crowe Says Actresses Need To Quit Complaining About Lack Of Lead Roles
Despite what his Australian counterpart, Cate Blanchett, has to say on the matter, Russell Crowe apparently thinks there are plenty of lead roles available for females in Hollywood.
In a new interview that almost begs for criticism, the actor says women complaining about the current state of scripts need to act their age.
"To be honest, I think you'll find that the woman who is saying that [the good roles for women have dried up is] the woman who at 40, 45, 48, still wants to play the ingenue, and can't understand why she's not being cast as the 21-year-old," Crowe said.
"Meryl Streep will give you 10,000 examples and arguments as to why that's bullshit, so will Helen Mirren, or whoever it happens to be. If you are willing to live in your own skin, you can work as an actor. If you are trying to pretend that you're still the young buck when you're my age, it just doesn't work."
Sadly for Crowe, there are enough stats available to rip his argument to shreds: females over 40 account for just 30% of all characters according to Indie Wire, and overall, there's been little movement in the numbers of female protagonists and females as speaking characters over the last decade.
"Moreover, female characters are less likely than males to have identifiable goals or to be portrayed as leaders of any kind," says Martha Lauzen, the Executive Director of the Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film.
And if Cate Blanchett of all people thinks it's a problem, perhaps Crowe should do some research before coming out with gems such as the below:
"I have heard of an actress, part of her fee negotiation was getting the number of children she was supposed to have lessened. Can you believe this? This (character) was a woman with four children, and there were reasons why she had to have four children - mainly, she lived in a cold climate and there was nothing to do but fornicate all day - so quit arguing, just play the role!"
Popcorn anyone?
RELATED:
Cate Blanchett gives amazing speech on Gough Whitlam
