Study Finds Male Non-Human Characters Dominate Children's Cartoons

Researchers from the University of California, Berkeley, have found that male non-human characters, such as animals, monsters, robots, and magical creatures, are predominantly featured in children's animated films, receiving approximately 75% of the screen time allocated to this category.

In contrast, female non-human characters receive around 25% of the screen time, according to a study that analyzed 224 animated films released between 1937 and 2025. The films included major releases from studios like Disney, DreamWorks, Pixar, and Illumination. The research, published on arXiv, identified and measured non-human characters and their screen time by using computational models and classifying character gender based on the voice actor's gender.

Some popular characters like Olaf from Disney's "Frozen" and Mike Wazowski from "Monsters, Inc." exemplify the prevalence of male non-human characters. In some instances, such as Disney's "Moana," female non-human characters had no screen time at all.

"I think our research is so important because it exposes the gender disparity that exists not only within movies broadly, but even within animation," said Dr. David Bamman, who led the study. "It shapes the ways children get acclimated to what's considered the norm."

Previous research has indicated a gender disparity in live-action films, where male characters generally receive three times more screen time than female characters. This new study extends that observation to the realm of non-human characters in animation.

However, the study also noted a trend toward improvement in recent years. Films like "Raya and the Last Dragon" and "Inside Out 2" featured female non-human characters with substantial screen time, accounting for nearly 79% and 78% respectively. The researchers also observed that female characters in animation are increasingly depicted sharing screen time with each other, suggesting a growing narrative independence.

While the study did not directly measure the impact of this male-skew on children, Dr. Bamman emphasized the broader implications, stating that "decades of research show that media shapes how children see themselves and interact with others."