Blanchett Reflects on the #MeToo Movement at Cannes
Australian actress Cate Blanchett expressed her disappointment with the quick waning of the #MeToo movement in Hollywood during an event at the Cannes Film Festival. She has always been vocal about gender equality and, quite frankly, felt let down by the lack of advancement over recent years.
Describing her emotions, she remarked on the despair surrounding incidents that seem to disregard women’s voices, noting that they were “closed out.” She added, “It’s fascinating how quickly they got sidelined. There are many individuals with a platform speaking up—saying things like, ‘This happened to me.’ But for the everyday women, out there on the street, it feels, well, closed off.”
The 57-year-old actress continued by acknowledging the existing disparities on film sets, sharing, “Every day, I’m counting heads. There are about 10 women and 75 men on set.”
She mentioned, “I appreciate men—I really do—but the humor tends to get repetitive. You tone it down a bit, and while I’ve grown used to it, entering a workspace dominated by one gender can make things quite dull for everyone involved.”
Back in 2018, when Blanchett served as the president of the Cannes jury, she led a demonstration on the red carpet, calling out harmful behavior against women striving for recognition in the film industry. Alongside 81 other women, they symbolically represented the total number of female directors featured in the competition since its beginning, a stark contrast to the 1,866 male directors selected during that time.
These feelings were echoed by fellow Oscar winner Julianne Moore at Cannes recently. During Kering’s Women in Motion talk, Moore reflected on the lack of female presence on sets up until 2016, recalling a moment when she and the third Assistant Camera Operator were the only women present on a particular set. She reminisced about being disheartened after Hillary Clinton’s election loss and recognizing that, indeed, “we were the only ones here.”
Moore observed, “It’s definitely improved over time, but at first, it was uncommon to see women on set.”
The roots of the #MeToo movement trace back to activist Tarana Burke, who founded it in 2006 to support survivors of sexual violence. In late 2017, actress Alyssa Milano reignited its message following the Harvey Weinstein allegations, leading to its global recognition.
