Turns out, action movies were their favorite genre.
Over two-and-a-half times more than rom-coms.
Women moviegoers want exactly what men want: the fun, big, loud, action-packed summer blockbuster.
T.J. Newman, author of ‘Worst Case Scenario’
I saw it eight times in theaters (Ive stopped counting home video views).
I didnt seeTitanicsix times in the theater because of the mushy love scenes.
I went for the spectacle.The Dark Knightis my favorite film of all time.
The movies that break out are the ones that satisfy both genders, like the recentTwistersjust did.
The difference in box office success betweenTwistersand the latest Jason Statham movie?
What was the difference in the 1980s between a Chuck Norris movie andDie Hard?
What was the difference in the 1990s between a Steven Segal movie vs.Speed?
The legendary producer Gale Anne Hurd (Terminator,Aliens,Armageddon) understood this.
In 1994, she told theNew York Times, Thats the thing about the best action-thriller stories.
They are for women, too.
And if theyre also for women, then women should be writing them as well.
(And this was 2023!
The year ofBarbie,Beyonce, and Taylor Swift!)
And that 30% was a 14%dropfrom the previous year.
Perceptions that women are better suited to certain types of material are just stereotypes, theyre merely limitations.
I agree, and it goes for writing, too.
So yeah, people werent exactly pounding down the door.
And I get it.
A failed Broadway actress-turned-bookseller-turned-flight attendant doesnt exactly scream bestselling author … which is probably whyFallingwas rejected by 41 agents.
I was repeatedly told this was a male-dominated genre and that I should try writing something else.
I cant tell you how much I hated that.
So I went even bigger and wroteDrowning:The Rescue of Flight 1421.
It debuted at No.
If I helped crack the glass ceiling, I wanted the women who came behind me to shatter it.
But four years later not much has changed.
I want to see more publishing companies and studios hiring women to tell these types of stories.
All of my books do.
As they say, write what you know.
Women have been involved in making movies since the earliest days of film.
Iknowthere are other girls out there like me, women who dream in blockbuster action sequences.
To them I say: dont let anything stand in your way and that starts with yourself.
I promise you, youre not alone.
Both as an artist, and as an audience member.
