Top 2023 movies shows diversity in Hollywood is paying off

Arturo Conde, NBC News

The movies with the most diverse casts made up 2023’s top films, a first in more than a decade of reports by UCLA on Hollywood diversity, according to its latest findings.

Just three days before the Oscars, the 11th annual UCLA Hollywood Diversity Report noted an important milestone: For the first time in the report’s history, the top 2023 films were those with the most diverse casts.

Three franchise movies highlighted in the report — “Creed III,” “Scream VI” and “John Wick: Chapter 4”— featured “50 percent or more actors of color” and “posted the highest earnings in their film series,” according to the Hollywood Diversity Report 2024, Part I, released on Thursday.

Moreover, diverse moviegoers and women made up the biggest audiences for top movies: “People of color dominated opening weekend sales for 14 of the top 20 films in 2023, while women led the charge among ticket buyers with three films in the top 10,” according to the report.

“Barbie,” which features Oscar-nominated supporting actors America Ferrera and Ryan Gosling, claimed the top box-office spot last year with more than $1.4 billion globally. The “key to its opening success were women, who packed theaters and made up almost 70 percent of its domestic ticket sales,” the report said.

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