Oscars Gender Gap: Docs, Foreign Language Films Still Way More Likely to Have Female Directors

With all the buzz over woman-directed films this year — from Patty Jenkins’ blockbuster “Wonder Woman” to Greta Gerwig’s indie darling “Lady Bird” — you’d think female filmmakers would have a better shot at the Oscars this year.

Far from it. Of the 274 narrative, English-language features eligible for the Academy Awards this year, only 18 percent have a female director or co-director, according to an analysis by TheWrap. Similarly, just 19 percent of 26 eligible animated features have at least one woman at the helm.

The odds are twice as strong for women in documentary features, where 35 percent of the 170 eligible entries were directed by woman.