LOS ANGELES: US actress and director Kristen Stewart has strongly criticized the film industry, saying Hollywood needs a fundamental shake-up to restore creative freedom and reverse setbacks for female filmmakers.
Stewart made the remarks in a New York Times interview and during a speech at a recent women’s luncheon in Los Angeles, according to media reports.
In the New York Times interview, Stewart, 35, said the entertainment business needed a “full system break”.
She described the current structures and rules as barriers that prevent artists from expressing themselves.
“We’re in a pivotal nexus, because I think we’re ready for a full system break,” she told the newspaper.
She added that actors and filmmakers should consider more radical approaches to reclaiming creative control, saying: “We need to start stealing our movies.”
Stewart also told the Times she had fought for nearly a year to direct her new film, The Chronology of Water, underscoring how difficult it is for artists to make the films they want without blockbuster budgets or studio backing.
Anger at backsliding on women’s progress
At a women’s luncheon organised by the body behind the Oscars, Stewart delivered an impassioned address about the rollback in opportunities for female filmmakers since the #MeToo movement.
She said she was “so angry” that gains made by women appeared to be reversing. Trade publication Variety reported that Stewart’s seven-minute speech drew several rounds of applause.
“The backsliding from a brief moment of progress is statistically devastating,” Stewart said, according to Variety.
She warned that films which are “too dark” or “too taboo” often face rejection, and that women’s frank portrayals of experience provoke “disgust and rejection” from gatekeepers.
Data underlines the problem
Annual monitoring of the industry supports Stewart’s concerns. The Celluloid Ceiling report, which tracks female participation behind the camera, found that just 11 of the top 100 grossing films in 2024 were directed by women, down from 16 in 2020.
The report shows how representation among top-grossing titles has fallen since the brief post-#MeToo rise.
Stewart said the problem was not only measurable gaps such as wage inequality, but also the “violence of silencing” that prevents women being heard.
She added that women should refuse tokenism and “start printing our own currency,” urging the industry to stop treating female stories as an afterthought.
Stewart’s speech came in front of a high-profile audience that included actors Sarah Paulson, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Tessa Thompson and Kate Hudson, Variety reported.
She referenced unions positively but criticised some industry rules for creating “unbelievable barriers” for artists.
What Stewart wants
Stewart argued for structural change rather than incremental fixes. She said unions remain essential but called for new models that allow filmmakers more freedom to make smaller, riskier, and artistically daring films.
She warned against complacency after early gains and urged creators and industry leaders to act to protect and expand women’s space in cinema.
Stewart also said she remains hopeful about her own work. She is preparing The Chronology of Water and said she was looking forward to making another film that she hoped would succeed on its own terms.
