Black and nonbinary actors saw an increase in representation in TV and film since the start of the pandemic, according to a study on casting for scripted live-action content. 

The Variety Business Intelligence found that Black talent had the highest gains in representation in episodic TV and film across racial and ethnic lines. The study also finds that nonbinary talent had the biggest gains when looking at gender and LGBTQ breakdowns. 

According to an NBC News report, the “Entertainment Diversity Progress Report” is part of a larger Variety Business Intelligence initiative used to create unbiased databases to track diversity, equity, and inclusion goals. Some of the highlights of the database include: 

• During the pandemic period, 70.5% of series released had a Black series regular, up notably 65.8% pre-pandemic. The number of films released with Black talent also increased (58.7% vs. 56.1%). 
• Women made up 42.7% of film roles during the pandemic, up from 41.6%. Female representation in TV climbed to 46.6% of series regular roles, up slightly from 44.5%. 
• Films with LGBTQ actors dropped to 10.7% compared to 12.9% pre-pandemic. Episodic TV saw the largest gains in representation with 21.8% of projects having a queer actor, up from 19.3% pre-pandemic. 
• The number of films released with an Indigenous main title cast nearly doubled during the pandemic to 10.3% of all movies released during that period. The number of series regulars increased by one role, bringing the total to 1.8% of the series regular roles during the pandemic.