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Blumhouse producer gets called out after claiming there 'aren't a lot' of female directors

Blumhouse producer gets called out after claiming there 'aren't a lot' of female directors

Blumhouse Productions have made some of the most acclaimed and profitable horror films in the past few years.

Some of those titles include Get Out, Insidious, The Purge, Sinister and Paranormal Activity.

This might not seem like a cause for concern, but none of those films, nor any of their horror films, for that matter, have ever been directed by a woman.

In a recent interview with Polygonabout the new Halloween movie, Blumhouse founder and producer, Jason Blum, was informed about this oversight which he wants to fix.

However, the problem, at least in his eyes, is that there just aren't enough female directors out there let alone those who want to make horror films.

Blum is quoted as saying:

We’re always trying to do that, We’re not trying to do it because of recent events. We’ve always been trying.

There are not a lot of female directors period, and even less who are inclined to do horror.

Blum does go on to mention the directors Jennifer Kent and Leigh Janiak, who he claims to have made offers to but which have either been refused or not been possible due to scheduling conflicts.

Yet it is still pretty baffling that a man in his position in the film industry could come out with a comment like this.

At this year's BFI London Film Festival, 38 per cent of the films in the festival have been directed by women, while 50 per cent of the films in competition have also been directed by women.

Although there is still a huge disparity between male and female directors in Hollywood, there has been a focused movement on getting more films made by women and seen by mass audiences.

However, this seems to have passed Blum and film fans and women directors are letting him know about a few names that he should be aware of.

After his comments went viral and were subject to a huge backlash, Blum put out an apology on Twitter, which was warmly received but still highlights the fact that not enough female film directors are having their voices heard or their films seen.

More: This campaign is highlighting the shocking lack of women in leadership roles​

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