Oscar winner Charlize Theron is calling out Hollywood’s unequal treatment of male and female action stars, criticizing an industry that gives men repeated opportunities after box-office failures while women often get just one shot.
“Guys get a free ride,” Theron told The New York Times, referencing male actors who continue landing action roles despite underperforming films. “When women do this and the movie maybe doesn’t hit fully, they don’t necessarily get a chance again. Studios take risks on the same guy over and over, even if his last few action movies flopped.”
Theron, a veteran of the genre since 2005’s Æon Flux (which she calls “a bad movie”), has since starred in Mad Max: Fury Road, Atomic Blonde, and Netflix’s The Old Guard franchise. But she says the physical toll has been immense—multiple surgeries on her neck, elbows, shoulders, and fractures from years of stunts.
Her latest feat? Hanging off a flying helicopter in The Old Guard 2. “By the end, I was dangling midair thinking, ‘If I pull this off, I’m done with stunts.’ But of course, that didn’t last,” she joked to Variety.
Despite the grueling demands, Theron remains committed to pushing for more female-led action films—“not as novelties, but as equals.”
The Old Guard 2 is now streaming on Netflix.
Read More: Full NYT Interview | The Old Guard 2 on Netflix
“It’s not a risk studios want to take—unless it’s for a man.” — Charlize Theron
The Pop Blog general news and updates, mostly from press releases and conferences.