A casting call for a new project produced by Quentin Tarantino has caused controversy after a Facebook post invited “whores” to apply.
The post, which has since been deleted, appeared on a casting agency page and began: “Casting Whores for Quentin Tarantino project”. The post later requested that all applicants have “natural breasts” and should put the word “whore” in the subject line.
Women and Hollywood contacted the agency, which has reportedly been in trouble for similar posts in the past. It claimed the film is being written and directed by a woman; the word “whores” came directly from the script.
“Putting a casting call out for, or including women in your script with the description of “whores,” is not ok,” the feminist blog wrote. “Nor is asking actresses to submit their photos and information for consideration with the subject line “Whore.” Aside from the fact that there are better words to use if one is looking to cast women who work in the sex industry, this description is actually a typical example of Hollywood sexism, particularly as it pertains to roles for women.”
The film doesn’t appear on Quentin Tarantino’s IMDb page. His last film The Hateful Eight drew controversy for its abusive treatment of the film’s female character, played by Jennifer Jason Leigh. Writing for RogerEbert.com, Laura Bogart referred to it as “hipster misogyny”.
Last year saw Rose McGowan tweet details of a casting call for an Adam Sandler film that asked women to wear clothing that “shows off cleavage” with “push up bras encouraged”. Earlier this year, Twitter user @femscriptintros shared a selection of tweets of the sexist way that women are introduced in scripts.
JANE, 28, athletic but sexy. A natural beauty. Most days she wears jeans, and she makes them look good.
— Ross Putman (@femscriptintros) February 10, 2016
JANE (late 20s) sits hunched over a microscope. She’s attractive, but too much of a professional to care about her appearance.
— Ross Putman (@femscriptintros) February 10, 2016
A tumblr was also set up called Casting Call Woes, which saw female actors share sexist character descriptions, such as “comes across as average-looking (but actually has potential to be pretty if she dressed different!)” and “she’s actually pretty even with no makeup”.
.jpg?w=600)
