To promote their new film American Ultra, co-stars Kristen Stewart and Jesse Eisenberg recently released a parody interview on Funny or Die, highlighting the issue of sexism toward women in interviews. Their question cards got switched, and in true Hollywood interview fashion, Kristen asked Jesse some pretty awkward and invasive questions.
Here is the full video:Their interview sheds light on a prevalent issue in Hollywood and beyond. Women are constantly asked questions that are both inappropriate and irrelevant to their career, while similar questions are almost never posed to their male counterparts. Here are some more flawless responses by female celebrities to these sexist questions (just so you get the idea).
During the last Oscar awards season, The Representation Project, an organization that challenges stereotypes and serves as the brains behind awesome movements and films such as Miss Representation, created the #AskHerMore campaign. The initiative explained, "Even at the Oscars, where we celebrate the highest artistic achievements in film, reporters often focus more on a woman’s appearance than what she has accomplished. This Sunday night we’re encouraging the media to #AskHerMore!" While men are asked more creative and existential questions, a woman's accomplishments are devalued and overshadowed by reporters asking who she's dating and what she's wearing. The issue is not simply that reporters are asking, "Who are you wearing?" The problem is that, most of the time, this is the only type of question asked.
The #AskHerMore movement is meant to inspire the media to ask more innovative questions on the red carpet and in the hot seat. With so many hard-working, successful women in Hollywood, the focus should be on their career and greater impact. The media does women a grave injustice by shrinking them down to their appearance and using sexist ideals to guide their questions. Reese Witherspoon, Amy Poehler, and many other women in Hollywood have since shown their support on social media and in interviews to get the conversation going.
It's about time we ask them more.
