These Women Are Revolutionizing Hollywood

A little over a year ago, as revelations of misbehavior by powerful men sparked a global reckoning, a group of women in entertainment came together to talk about what they could do to prevent abuse and ensure equity for working women.

The result was Time’s Up, an organization committed to building a world that insists on safe, fair, and dignified work for women of all kinds. What started in Hollywood has grown to a coalition of women spanning industries and geographies, with more women meeting and organizing every day.

Time’s Up Entertainment is now just one of the many affiliates working to solve industry-specific challenges, and the women involved are united in their unwavering commitment to keep fighting until their female peers have the opportunity to reach their full potential at work.

Here, some of the organization’s most engaged women share what inspired their participation, what keeps them motivated in their activism, and how they plan to create lasting change. Please read these stories, and join us on this journey at TimesUpNow.com.

—Nithya Raman, Executive Director of Time’s Up Entertainment

Dream Role

“This year, I don’t want to play anyone’s girlfriend or wife. When I’m not the object of the narrative, I’m the subject of the narrative. I don’t want to be boxed into any space at all. I want to feel like I can be expansive and that my résumé reflects how multifaceted I am as a human.” —Tessa Thompson

Big Plans

“Not all people in Mexico understand feminism, so my business partner and I interviewed 30 decididas—female actors, activists, athletes, moms—to create a documentary about the decisions they’ve made that make them who they are.” —Olga Segura

Wake-Up Call

“I was one of the first black women to ever direct a studio movie—2005’s Herbie Fully Loaded. I’d walk into the studio and the often white male security guards would say, ‘The messenger entrance is down the hall.’ I never faulted them; even then, there were just so few black or brown faces that had walked through those halls.” —Angela Robinson

Action Item

“We need to be vigilant. We can’t allow any backsliding. When we don’t need a legal-defense fund, because there are no more Brock Turners and R. Kellys, then we’ll know we have accomplished change.” —Alex Kondracke

Change Means

“Never having to hear the words ‘She is the first.’  ” —Nina Shaw

On Location

“So many directors, actors, writers, and below-the-line talent with families drop out of the business because they cannot commit to out-of-town jobs. Our system doesn’t work for many women; it kills me to think of all that creative talent unrealized.” —Naomi Scott

What I Wish I Knew Then

“Women aren’t your enemies. Sisterhood is powerful.” —Karla Souza

Who I Look Up To

“I think all of us at Time’s Up secretly want to be Nina Shaw when we grow up. She’s the ultimate badass.” —Jurnee Smollett-Bell

Wake-Up Call

“Early in my career, I saw how the glass ceiling existed and how you could lose yourself when you make compromises with who you are as a person. Being more senior, we’re setting the stage and creating the barometer of what people are going to tolerate and not tolerate.” —Debra Bergman

What I Wish I Knew Then

“Don’t allow yourself to believe that meritocracies exist in any industry. Hone your craft and heighten your expertise, but also make sure to network in circles that will lift your professional profile. Most important, speak up and often.” —Yolanda Cochran

Pay It Forward

“While the sisterhood that has been created in Hollywood recently feels profound, male allies are an important part of continued change and cultural growth. Producer Bruce Paltrow was my mentor. He saw I could be a leader and made me a leader.” —Sara Fischer

Big Plans

“I created an inclusive freelance database that works as a hiring tool
for Netflix executives and producers to find diverse and inclusive crews, and I’m hosting an event in the spring that will bring together line producers and diverse department heads.” —Noelle Green

Change Means

“There’s a genuine divide between the projects women are routinely hired for—lower-budget comedies and dramas—and the more complicated $100 million to $200 million visual-effects and stunt-heavy movies. We need to hire more women and minorities in key positions on those big-budget blockbusters.” —Dana Belcastro

Action Item

“Change the fact that there are 2.24 male characters for every one female character represented in film. That ‘ethnic minorities’ make up almost 40 percent of the U.S. population yet were cast in only 17 percent of lead roles in films in 2013.” –Andrea Riseborough

What I Wish I Knew Then

“Stop being so damned nervous—and never think sexual harassment perpetrated against me was somehow my responsibility to deal with and stay silent about.” –Mira Sorvino

“They think you’re mad now, but things will change. More people will be mad. Keep being transparent about your experience.” –A.R.

Change Means

“Myths shatter, access and opportunity are given to everyone with talent, and individuals from a variety of different backgrounds and experiences feel a sense of belonging in Hollywood. Belonging is the goal, so all can thrive creatively.” –Stacy Smith

“Stereotyping dies a quick death, and everyone can enter their workplace and not be treated as ‘less than.’ ” –A.R.

Wake-Up Call

“When we worked on our first project about diversity in Hollywood in 2005, it fired up my students at USC. Working with them inspired me to be a catalyst for change. Now we are full throttle; inclusion is not only a reality in Hollywood but also one that the entertainment industry should lead on in the years to come.” –S.S.

Big Plans

“I hope to work on initiatives that target the root of the problem. Peace Over Violence and Youth Over Violence have created comprehensive curriculums to educate kids about consent education.” –M.S.

Next Up

“I am very excited to move beyond talking about my past trauma and being able to focus on where we are as a movement and where we’re going.” –M.S.

What I Wish I Knew Then

“Don’t be small so someone else gets to be big. Be big together. Also, invest in one great pair of shoes. My feet are still wrecked from the early days!” –Katie McGrath

Wake-Up Call

“Watching TV and film as a curly-haired, brown-skinned trans girl and never seeing myself.” –Janet Mock

“I recently did a commercial, and they sent me a list of five directors to pick from. I said, ‘Wait, where are the women in the list?’ And they said, ‘Oh my God, you’re right.’ They were on autopilot. We need fresh eyes and a shift in consciousness.” –Eva Longoria

Who I Look Up To

“My role model is Sir Lady Java, a stunning dancer who fought for her right to perform in the late ’60s, when the government shut her down for taking the stage as a trans woman. She persevered and continued to stun crowds until her retirement.” –J.M.

Action Item

“Talented women and people of color must be a part of visioning and greenlighting the stories and entertainment or our business will not keep up with what dynamic audiences expect and deserve.” –K.M.

Change Means

“Not being ‘the first,’ but ensuring that we are never the last or the only.” –J.M.

“A story becomes significantly different when you fold in collaborators from all walks of life. Most film reviewers are white men, so when your female comedy is reviewed, they’re like, ‘I didn’t get it.’ Of course you didn’t. The movie wasn’t made for you. We need diversity in all facets of this industry.” –E.L.

Up Next

“I’m developing projects that provide more mirrors for viewers to see themselves.” –J.M.

“I’m directing a workplace comedy called 24-7. Kerry Washington and I star. Kerry’s been my friend for 20 years, and she said, ‘You’re ready for this.’ We may not have gotten the greenlight without the sisterhood of Time’s Up. This industry used to pit us against each other. Now we get to create the roles.” –E.L.

“Continue to build our team using the Bad Robot rule: When hiring, recruit and interview in proportion to the population, meaning at least 50 percent of candidates are women and at least 40 percent of candidates are people of color. Then hire the best person for the job.” –K.M.

Change Means

“Projects that expand our culture’s understanding of difference through storytelling.” –Zackary Drucker

“Hollywood looking more and more like the world that we live in. Having balanced representation changes the culture of any place or industry.” –Shonda Rhimes

“Moving outside of your comfort zone.” –Regina King

Wake-Up Call

“Being ostracized as a gender-nonconforming youth while witnessing the economic and social barriers to my African American, immigrant, and disabled peers.” –Z.D.

“I’ve seen plenty of powerful women waiting for someone else to give them permission to have power. There is no such thing. It’s truly inspiring to see a woman knowing her power and using it.” –S.R.

What I Wish I Knew Then

“How to breathe underwater.” –Z.D.

Action Item

“Working on Transparent helped catalyze a conversation about trans identity that was long overdue in a moment when the world was ready to have it.” –Z.D.

“I want to see more women building supportive communities. There are women out there struggling alone. Women simply forgotten in conversations. Be a person who pulls other women, new women, different women into your circle. Be present and fight for each other.” –S.R.

“Opportunities for marginalized actors. Some choices are made due to ‘star power.’ But if a role doesn’t require the actor to be a certain race or gender to tell the story, the actor should receive the part based on performance. Way too often, I hear young actors say they didn’t get a role because the filmmakers wanted someone who was racially ambiguous.” –R.K.

Up Next

“I am continuously changing and being inspired. Growth is the thing that inspires me to make a change. I made a pledge to myself on a huge stage that forces me to be accountable.” –R.K.

“Continuing to work on Trans Legends, my trans oral-history series for Broadly/Vice." –Z.D.

The Future of Hollywood Is

“Nonbinary.” –Z.D.

What I Wish I Knew Then

“Ignore the insecurity that makes one think one is not ready for the next leap forward. Have confidence you can do it all.” –Paula Weinstein

“Make sure I receive the credit that I deserve for my work. Oh, and invest in real estate.” –Lisa Cortés

Who I Look Up To

“My mother, because she was fearless. Her principles were expressed in all of her actions as a producer, employing blacklisted writers in the films she made, and in her personal commitment to activism.” –P.W.

Wake-Up Call

“The realization that the proverbial glass ceiling was not just limited to my prior career in the music business but in Hollywood as well.” –L.C.

“Watching white men get the lion’s share of financing and support while others struggled to find the same opportunities for their extraordinary stories.” —Keri Putnam

Change Means

“A tireless pursuit of equality.” –P.W.

“My place at the table is permanent and not reserved. And I own the table.” –L.C.

“A wholesale rethink of what—and who—is valued in our culture.” —K.P.

Action Item

“At the Sundance Film Festival’s 2019 Festival, 53 percent of the directors in our U.S. Dramatic Competition were women, and Chinonye Chukwu was the first black female director to win the Grand Jury Prize. I’m looking to create even more inclusion milestones at the festival moving forward.” —Kim Yutani

“Fewer tolls and more access on the road to distribution.” –L.C.

Dream Project

“The Paul Robeson story.” –P.W.

Up Next

“Continuing to walk in my truth and providing Crayolas to those who color outside the lines.” –L.C.

“Coleading ReFrame, a field-wide collaboration founded four years ago to further equity in representation behind the camera.” —K.P.

The Future of Hollywood Is

“Awkwafina.” —K.Y.

Change Means

“More ethnic and cultural diversity in senior executive positions, especially in the C suites, and greater emphasis on meaning and quality over quantity.” —Tara Duncan

Action Item

“So many of the abuses that we have seen have emerged from the incredible imbalances of power in the industry. I want to see a future where all workers in the industry are empowered to challenge abuses and seek justice, no matter who they are and where they work.” —Nithya Raman

What I Wish I Knew Then

“If I could, I would give my younger self the advice to always work hard and try hard, but if a situation or culture is just fundamentally not a good fit for you, it is OK to take the lesson and move forward. This is not failure, this is learning.” —Niija Kuykendall

Up Next

“Committing to the success of Who’s in the Room, a Time’s Up–sponsored program.” —T.D.

“[Who's in the Room] aims to help young, diverse executives and producers build networks that will support them throughout their careers.” —N.K.

In The Future

“We’ll see a badass black female James Bond–type of spy on the big screen. That would be good for the whole world.” —N.K.

Change Means

“Greater diversity of all types of people in the boardrooms and at the senior conference tables at many companies in Hollywood. If everyone around a table looks like you, has the same perspective as you, you are failing to challenge yourself, you are diminishing the ability of your company to succeed and ultimately you are not serving audiences.” —Megan Colligan

“Toppling oppressive systems of power to make a more just world for everyone. I want the tools of protagonism to be put into the hands of marginalized people. Since the dawn of media, mostly white, cisgender, straight men have been telling their stories and depicting the world through their perspective. It’s time that queer people, trans people, women, nonbinary people, people of color, disabled people—all otherized people—have the opportunity to tell their authentic stories and, in the process, create propaganda for their own privilege.” —Jill Soloway

Wake-Up Call

“As a studio executive, the rules I was taught all seemed designed to favor stories told by and about white guys. Once I started breaking some of those rules, whether as an executive with movies like Freaky Friday, Princess Diaries, and Under the Tuscan Sun, or as a producer with The Hunger Games, I was inspired to break more of them.” —Nina Jacobson

In Good Company

“My incredible mentors, who I often try to emulate, have taught me a lot. Like Miri Yoon, who is a badass and an unflinching film and television producer. And Niija Kuykendall, who is a badass and an unflinching film executive. I have always looked up to people who can be both badass and unflinching.” —Alana Mayo

Change Means

“Being around the strength, intelligence, expertise, and dedication of so many different women who inspire us all to do better. We share a philosophy, set of values, and work ethic that makes me proud and excited for the future.” —Meredith O'Sullivan Wasson

"Implementing systems where you can actually see results. Now that we have outlined and brought to the forefront all the issues and transgressions and have discussed and analyzed and shared ad nauseam, what is the process to yield results? What interests me most is to witness how this movement has affected not just real behavioral change, but true policy change." —Adriana Alberghetti

Wake-Up Call

“When I was a little girl and I was playing with the idea of being an actress, I had an agent and a manager and I went on auditions and booked a couple of commercials, print work, a few sitcoms. But what struck me was that every time I went out for a job, it was the same job: a little black girl who came from a poor family, who wasn't very educated, who spoke with a lot of slang. My mom even had an outfit in the back of the car for those auditions: raggedy jeans, torn t-shirt, worn tennis shoes. I was probably eight at the time and I remember thinking, I really want to be in a position when I get older to create more roles and perspectives.” —Andrea Nelson Meigs

"The realization of how lopsided our business really is. In one of the most, if not the most, progressive industries in the world, we need to do better." —Julia Darmody

What Fires Me Up

“The old and much more powerful men who drunkenly cornered me at premieres when I was much younger. The many female assistants I’ve seen stay in their jobs while men were promoted because ‘men are just not as good assistants as women.’ The countless people who assumed my career was over when I became a mom.” —Keleigh Thomas Morgan

“I feel relentlessly optimistic. More inclusion will drive innovation, which will be good for everyone.” —Christy Haubegger

Looking Forward

“The world will be a better place when all people see themselves represented in stories, government, business, and culture.” —Michelle Kydd Lee

“Last year was shrouded in darkness, yet the light managed to seep in. And here we are—not just standing, but marching on.” —Maha Dakhil

Hair and makeup: Mikayla Gottlieb at Opus Beauty for Dior and Mynxii White at Opus Beauty for Temptu; On-set Production: Diana King; Special thanks: Marty Hendlish.

This story originally appeared in the April 2019 issue of Marie Claire.

Correction: An earlier version of this article misidentified the name of the Time’s Up Women of Color collective.

Read the interview with fellow Change Makers Jessica Chastain, Ava DuVernay, and Constance Wu, here.