SAG Study Finds Latino, Black Roles Growing

A Screen Actors Guild study brings mixed employment news to actors, showing a decrease in the overall number of film and television roles in 1999 but also indicating that Latino and black actors landed a higher percentage of roles.

Roles for Latino performers, in fact, hit their highest percentage--4.4%--since the guild began tracking such statistics in 1992.

The number of roles governed by guild contracts, however, fell by more than 12%, representing a broader source of concern. In 1999, 49,662 roles were signed to guild contracts, a decrease from 56,715 roles cast the year before. Last year, 21% of the total number of roles were awarded to performers of color, compared with 19% in 1998.

Blacks were cast in 14.1% of the roles last year, versus 13.4% the year before. Latinos were cast in 4.4% compared with 3.5% in 1998.

There was no such increase for Asian Americans and Native American actors. For the second year in a row, Asian Americans comprised 2.2% of the roles, while Native Americans accounted for 0.2%.

“In addition, performers of these ethnicities were twice as likely to be cast [in] supporting rather than lead roles,” the report said.

While the statistics offered some hope to Latinos and blacks, breakdowns based on age and gender demonstrated a continuing disparity, the guild said.

In 1999, women over the age of 40 were cast in only 24% of female roles and comprised a mere one-fifth of leading female roles. More than 6 in 10 parts overall went to men, mirroring earlier surveys.

According to the annual report, men were cast in almost twice as many roles and worked more than twice as many days as women in TV and theatrical projects.