Behind the Scenes: Unveiling Gender in Hollywood
Live Journal, 2014
Live Journal, 2014
Alamy, 2015
Alamy, 2015
At a glance the glitz and glamour of Hollywood and celebrity life is one to admire and aspire to.
However, under the surface of this there is a dark undertone that pushes a narrative that forms our perceptions of gender.
While men are praised for being rugged or a "silver fox", women are criticised every step of the way. The "dad bod" is sought after, but women can never seem to get it right.
Womens body, hair, makeup, skin all get targeted and it doesn't stop at cosmetics that they are judged.
A woman's personal life is also looked at under a microscope. There is an infatuation with a women's personal life, one that doesn't seem to follow men around.
Which must force us to consider, why does society feel like it is ok to objectify not only women, but celebrities in general.
As well as how do we as a society fall prey to Hollywood's narrative that pushes traditional gender norms.
Celebrity Couples
Celebrity couples are a great way to show this traditional narrative that Hollywood feeds us. It also is a great place to look when analysing how different genders are represented and looked at. Because celebrity couples are two stars coming together to form a powerhouse, media and attention is automatically drawn to this couple, leading to a heightened public interest.
In these relationships there is a huge disparity between how a man is spoken about or viewed vs how a women is viewed in the relationship.
Which is, majorly due to society not viewing female celebrities as human. This is why society feels so comfortable judging, critiquing and being so out spoken about a female's appearance or personal life.
Simone de Beuviour theorised early on that gender was completely constructed. Therefore, the female gender was constructed by society, forcing women to become "the other". Secondary to men, an extension of them, the weaker and darker side of humanity. Wherein women are indistinguishable from men yet inherently connected, leading to their classification as 'the sex,' objectified by men. In contrast, men are subjects, seen as complete and essential, whereas women are relegated to the realm of 'otherness'. Which has dictated the idea of what a women is, or should be. (Beauvoir, 1983)
Which can absolutely be seen in celebrity relationships.There are so many cases of celebrity women that are only seen as being the wife of a male celebrity. Despite whatever the female celebrity has done in the past or is currently doing, they are seen as an extension of their male partner. In these same cases, the male in the relationship is still praised for their work, intelligence and people don't really care too much about their personal lives.
BAZAAR, 2015
BAZAAR, 2015
Beyonce and Jay Z
Beyonce is a powerhouse on her own, but is constantly faced with intense scrutiny about her appearance and motherhood. Where as Jay Z's controversies and achievements receive more attention. Proving that this differing gender representation is not just due to the male in the relationship being "more popular".
BAZAAR, 2022
BAZAAR, 2022
George Clooney and Amal Clooney
George Clooney is well know for being seen as Hollywood's "silver fox", what is probably lesser known is that his wife is an incredibly smart women. Amal Clooney is a successful human rights lawyer, but she often just gets labelled as George Clooneys wife. People talk far more about her relationship with George Clooney, rather than her success and accomplishments.
US Magazine, 2022
US Magazine, 2022
Kim Kardashian and Kanye West
Kim Kardashians rise to fame was through reality tv. This gave audiences a huge insight into her life, giving them the opportunity to classify her as vain or objectify her. Not only this but Kardashian is arguably most well known for her scandalous sex tape. West on the other hand, although his, many controversies is often labelled as a musical visionary, artistic, and simply outspoken. Which draws all the attention away from his personal life.
People, 2023
People, 2023
Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt
Jolie and Pitt are a great example of two talented celebrities, who have both has successful careers. However, Jolie is constantly subject to far more criticisms of her personal life, her hair, body, skin, motherhood, and health issues. Pitt has never had to worry about anything like this, as he has always been just acclaimed for his successful films, facing little scrutiny for his private life.
Depp v. Heard
No matter what the court ruled, social media, specifically TikTok, decided early on that Johnny Depp was the victim in this case. In this LIVE defamation case not only did these two people have to describe in depth their personal lives, abuses and assaults, but online Heard received a terrible amount of hate.
An article by Stuff very accurately describes the situation. That everyone hates Heard because she is too messy for the internet. There is no doubt that this relationship was unhealthy and abusive for both parties involved, which is where the internet, especially TikTok can't understand. In many domestic violence cases, women are rarely believed, in this case not only is Heard a victim she is also a co-perpetrator. It is too difficult to comprehend that the victim can also inflict abuse. Therefore, it is easy to side with the man.
The hate that Heard received online was almost unbearable. You couldn't miss how she was being treated. This lead to the ultimate demise of her career, almost being shunned from Hollywood. The hate and abuse from this case were so bad that when she was filming her latest blockbuster "Aquaman 2" 2022, a co-star would dress up like her ex Depp and scare her, in attempts to get her to quit. He also heavily pushed the studio to fire Heard and recast her character.
Image Credit (Radar, 2016)
Depp on the other hand received praise and support throughout this trial. #JusticeForJohnnyDepp was trending throughout the whole trial. It was full of tweets offering support for the star, whilst also tearing down Heard's name and reputation in the process.
Support for Depp in many cases is people trying to hold female abusers accountable and support male victims, which has lacked in the past. However, for others, this was another easy way to raise men and put women down. Women are still fighting to be recognised in abuse and domestic violence cases, and so often it is easy to see women as "the other", as objects without feelings. Yet it's so easy to support and see men as the victims as men have feelings and are real humans, not "the other". I think that in a case like Depp v. Heard, there was no winner, both parties experienced abuse and perpetrated the abuse, but looking at it from a media perspective, Depp won. Amber Heard was shunned from Hollywood, kicked off the internet and had to witness horrible things said about her and the very real abuse that she experienced.
Image Credit (E!news, 2023)
Celebrity Representation of Hegemonic Masculinity and Femininity
Various dichotomous systems are used in society that characterise the ideological, artificial social constitution of gender; the masculine and feminine (Kaiser, 1989).
Hegemonic masculinity consists of dominance, strength, confidence and independence. Hegemonic femininity is the binary opposite; softness, empathy, dependence, and a preoccupation with one's appearance.
The concept of 'celebrity' is more than just a person within a publicised profession, it is the intense construction of a persona by both the person, the public and the media.
The image of the 'celebrity' reflect discourses and values already present in the public, so when hegemonic gender roles exist in society, celebrities reflect to the audience what is expected of them – hegemonic masculinity and femininity. As scholar Rosemary J. Coombe elaborates; “the star image is authored by it’s consumers as well as it’s producers. ” (Coombe, 1992, p. 62).
(Dagnall, 2020)
(Dagnall, 2020)
Representations Of Masculinity
Three male celebrities; Alexander Skarsgård, Bad Bunny and Jude Law featured at the 2024 Met Gala. All signify a celebrity representation of hegemonic masculinity; white, wearing suits, standing in dominant, masculine poses.
Notably, all these celebrities also maintain celebrity personas throughout their acting or musical careers that are somewhat sexualised and alpha-masculine. Alexander Skarsgård is most known for his role acting as Tarzan; a man who fights with gorillas. Bad Bunny is a Puerto Rican rapper with highly sexualised songs, with machismo. Jude Law often plays sophisticated, patriarchal men.
It is notable that these celebrities capitalise on society's hegemonic gender roles to associate themselves with an 'ideal' masculinity, and embody this masculinity in their work and self-representation.
(Vogue, 2024)
(Vogue, 2024)
(Vogue, 2024)
(Vogue, 2024)
(Vogue, 2024)
(Vogue, 2024)
Representations Of Femininity
Hyperfemininity may be defined as what is extreme hegemonic femininity. S. Holland and J. Harpin describe the hyper-femininity as “passive and mostly sedentary focusing on her appearance as a leisure activity.” (Hairpin, 2015)
In western culture, women are more likely to be rewarded for displays of appearance than their overt actions, female celebrities will be asked more questions about their appearance than their male counterparts (Kaiser, 1989).
Performance of the feminine operates within a wider ideological framework, in which certain attributes contribute to hegemonic femininity. When a woman embodies these attributes, she is considered to submit to the traditional gender role (Paff & Lakner, 1997).
Representations Of Femininity
(Vogue, 2024)
(Vogue, 2024)
Ariana Grande, 2024 Met Gala
Ariana Grande wears white symbolising purity, and a corseted top forming a small waist, and wide skirt for wide hips. The flow of the skirt spreads out resemblant of a wedding veil. Overall the dress is soft, elegant and feminine.
(Shafer, 2024)
(Shafer, 2024)
Margot Robbie, 2024 BAFTA Awards
Margot Robbie wears a pink stripe mimicking the female body hourglass shape. Her hands are crossed in a timid, non-threatening manner that also softens her shoulders.
(Vogue, 2024)
(Vogue, 2024)
Kim Kardashian, 2024 Met Gala
Note all three women wear corseted, curvaceous dresses – particularly Kim Kardashian who has become the embodiment of the beauty symbol of unnatural curves wearing a tight corset. Her hands are holding onto a cardigan, covering herself - this softens her look appearing more modest and elegant.
Gender representation
Clothing
One form of gender representation embodied by celebrities is clothing. Clothing is inextricably tied to the expression of gender identity, as societal conditioning has led to codes of masculine and feminine symbols existing within the colouring, shapes and textiles of clothing. In a study conducted by Susan Kaiser, girls ‘of all ages’ associated ‘concern with appearance and popularity’ with frilly dresses, while traits of aggression, bravery or strength were associated with masculine clothing such as jeans (Kaiser, 1989).
Pose
In celebrity posing women tend to stand in a ‘contrapposto’ style to curve the spine, creating an S or C curve. Men are more likely to stand straight, with the hip maintained as angular for a more masculine appearance. Men place the weight on the front foot to create a more aggressive impression. Women may round their shoulders, while men exaggerate their size, slightly outwardly turning their arms. A clenched fist also appears to masculine while women lightly curve their hands. Men work to sharpen their pose, women look to soften theirs (Rand, 2014). This speaks to the hegemonic gender roles of masculine and feminine; everything about the celebrity works to embody their societal expectations.
Transgender celebrity representation
"Masculine and feminine roles are not biologically fixed but socially constructed"
JUDITH BUTLER
On June 1, 2015 Caitlyn Jenner revealed her new identity from what the world once knew as "Olympic gold medalist, Bruce Jenner", or "Bruce Jenner" father and husband on reality TV programme "Keeping Up With The Kardashians".
Her new identity was revealed by a Vanity Fair interview with Buzz Bissinger. She explains in the interview that "sports saved my life" because it helped prove her masculinity. Judith Butler female philosopher argues that gender is not something you are born with but is behaviour you learn to fit into society.
This is the first photo shown of Caitlyns' new identity. Dressed in pure white, accentuating her hourglass figure, her hair is styled long and "perfect", similarly her makeup is full glam. The pose that Caitlyn was shown to us is also very feminine, soft, curvy and closed off, rather than strong like photos pre-transition. Every aspect of this "first look at Caitlyn" was intentional to show the audience (society), that Caitlyn was feminine and soft like other female celebrities.
Once the media saw Caitlyn performing to the feminine gender they accepted Jenner as a woman. Once they accepted that she was a female, they began treating her like one...
Caitlyn Jenner said in her Glamour Women of the Year speech, she was suddenly faced with questions after coming out, "What's your style? What are you going to wear? Who are your heroes? Are you a feminist? All these questions, and I said, 'Oh my God, I have so much to learn,'" she said.
The term “gender performativity” (Butler,1990) explains how the idea of gender is a performance that is a learned behaviour such as the way a person walks, talks and dresses.
Transgender celebrities such as Caitlyn Jenner faces pressures to comply with the societal norms of what being a woman looks like. Her experience highlights how gender is performative and that she is learning how to navigate the complexity of the idea of gender.
Constrastingly, trasngender Elliot Page famously known for movie Juno playing a pregnant teen girl. He is showcasing dominance through his pose and wearing a tight singlet showing his muscles.
Celebrity culture helps to understand society's gender norms and biases. they Show how women are often judged by appearance and personal lives while men receive praise for their talents as a celebrities and are not viewed by their personal lives. Celebrity couples represent the dynamic where women are often overlooked by their male partners regardless of their accomplishments. The case of Depp vs Heard shows the challenges faced by women such as the fear of not being heard, believed, or supported in instances such as domestic violence. Celebrities reinforce the gender norms of masculinity and femininity. Where male celebrities embody the image of dominance and strength while women attach to the ideal beauty standards and are submissive. Transgender celebrities like Caitlyn navigate the complexity of gender expectations explaining her pressures to comply with the societal standards of being a woman. The experience of transgender celebrities can help to understand how gender is something that is performed. Overall, celebrity culture showcases society's issues and attitudes towards gender.
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