Cate Blanchett has lamented that the #MeToo movement, which gained momentum in 2018, ‘got killed very quickly’ in an industry that remains plagued by gender inequality.
The awareness campaign is a movement against sexual abuse, assault, and rape culture in which countless survivors have bravely shared their experiences.
It began as a social media hashtag in light of the abuse allegations against film producer Harvey Weinstein (who is serving a 23-year prison sentence), spreading virally when American actress Alyssa Milano encouraged other women to speak out with the phrase ‘Me Too’ to highlight the magnitude of the problem.
Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Lawrence, Uma Thurman, and more high-profile names joined in, with media coverage quickly spreading and thousands upon thousands of women and marginalised communities banding together.
For a period, #MeToo had a huge online presence, but, according to Hollywood icon Blanchett, the landscape hasn’t changed much.
In a meaty Cannes Film Festival talk on Sunday attended by Metro, she began: ‘Well, I mean, it got killed very quickly, which I think is very interesting.
‘I’m still on film sets, and I do the headcount every day, and it is still… there’s 10 women, and there’s 75 men every morning.’
The Oscar-winning actress, 57, added: ‘I love men, but what happens is the jokes become the same. You just have to brace yourself slightly, and I’m used to that, but it just gets boring for everybody when you walk into a homogeneous workplace. I think it has an effect on the work.’
Blanchett went on to comment on the disparities between celebrities ‘with platforms who are able to speak up with relative safety’ about what has happened to them and ‘the so-called average woman on the street’.
‘Why does that get shut down?’, she asked.
‘All you’re saying is that what it revealed is a systemic layer of abuse, not only in this industry but in all industries, and if you don’t identify a problem, you can’t solve the problem.
‘If you shut that conversation down, you can’t move on.’
On a more positive note, the Carol lead reflected on the shift in how women support one another these days, having grown up herself amid the narrative that ‘women are antagonistic and they don’t know about friendship’.
Blanchett praised how actresses who are advancing in their careers and venturing into directing are ‘providing opportunities for actresses who don’t have as big a profile as they do’.
‘My generation is very aware that we come from that toxic environment and not wanting to replicate that, so any way that we can, [we] pave the way or help support the women who are coming up behind us.’
The Australian stage and screen legend has long been an advocate for women’s rights and protections and has also been praised for her advocacy around Free Palestine, walking the Cannes carpet two years ago with a dress featuring a subtle nod to its flag.
Additionally, in 2018, she served as Cannes jury president, when the #MeToo movement was rife. This involved leading a march alongside Kristen Stewart, Léa Seydoux, Ava DuVernay, Agnès Varda, and more, walking up the steps of the Palais des Festivals holding hands.
As they did so as part of a red carpet protest, they remained silent, stopping halfway to the entrance to signify the difficulties for women ‘to climb the social and professional ladder’.
When the protest ended, Blanchett took to a microphone, reading a group statement to call for safer working conditions for women and for equal pay laws to be upheld.
‘Women are not a minority in the world, yet the current state of our industry says otherwise,’ they said.
‘As women, we all face our own unique challenges, but we stand together on these stairs today as a symbol of our determination and commitment to progress.’
Got a story?
If you’ve got a celebrity story, video or pictures get in touch with the Metro.co.uk entertainment team by emailing us celebtips@metro.co.uk, calling 020 3615 2145 or by visiting our Submit Stuff page – we’d love to hear from you.