In an interview with Polygon, Jason Blum - the founder of horror production house Blumhouse - admitted that while he's tried to make a horror movie with a female director attached, he's found it difficult as, according to him, there aren't that many.
In the interview, Blum was adamant that his company seeking out female directors - which has produced 'Get Out', the upcoming 'Halloween' reboot, 'Insidious' and many more - isn't "trying to do it because of recent events."
"We’ve always been trying," Blum explained. "There are not a lot of female directors period, and even less who are inclined to do horror. I’m a massive admirer of Jennifer Kent (director of 'The Babadook). I’ve offered her every movie we’ve had available. She’s turned me down every time." The comments came as Blum was confronted with the statistic that he's yet to have a female director on one of his productions.
Needless to say, Blum's comments drew some comments from female directors, including Irish director Aislinn Clarke, who directed found-footage horror film 'The Devil's Doorway'.
To be fair there are fewer female horror directors, @jason_blum didn’t say they don’t exist, but we could do with being trusted, invested in, and supported more. That will help inspire and grow a new generation of female horror filmmakers. It’s a gap that can be bridged.
— AshClarke (@AislinnClarke) October 17, 2018
Here’s the thing. Producers and studios, if they are really serious about hiring women directors, need to work on fostering talent that has been overlooked rather than simply chasing the overbooked few female directors.
You have to take chances on new voices to achieve parity.
— Gennifer Hutchison (@GennHutchison) October 17, 2018
Not only that, Cut-Throat Women also posted a link to their database of over 650 female directors who work in the horror genre, so it's clearly not just a case of they're not being enough either.
Hey @jason_blum. You said, "There are not a lot of female directors period, and even less who are inclined to do horror." I've gathered a list of 650 ACTIVE FEMALE HORROR DIRECTORS (https://t.co/gxenAColvx) and it's growing every day. Original source: https://t.co/tkK1Uwadmw
— Cut-Throat Women (@cutthroatwomen) October 17, 2018
Blum came out shortly after the interview went live, admitting that he was probably somewhat passionate in his response to the question and didn't fully clock the significance of what he was saying. In a statement released from his Twitter account, Blum said that he "spoke too quickly about an issue I am passionate about. Over 50% of our audience is female, over 50% of Blumhouse execs are women. Some of our most successful franchises are anchored by women, including the one opening tomorrow / today, led by the biggest female legend in the genre."
Here's Blum's statement in full.
— Jason Blum (@jason_blum) October 18, 2018