USC Annenberg and Gold House analyzed the portrayal of Asian characters in TV and film.
The study reviewed a sample of 99 major Asian characters and the 73 titles (TV episodes and films) in which they appeared across 39 TV series and films streamed in 2022.
Key findings include:
1.) 82% of Asian characters were race-agnostic meaning race either had nothing to do with the character’s storyline, or was referenced only briefly about the character.
2.) 68% of Asian characters never spoke to another Asian character, despite an average of 4 Asian characters per title.
3.) 44% of Asian characters with jobs were “knowledge workers” who engaged in intellectual work rather than manual or service labor.
— 54% of these characters worked in law, science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).
5.) Each title had an average of four Asian characters.
— Only four titles had Asian “ensemble” casts in which more than 30% of the characters were Asian.
— Of the 99 major characters, virtually all were played by Asian (74%) or multiracial Asian (25%) actors.
Find the original report here.
