Gender representation is everywhere in media. Depending on where you look, you can find more stereotyped and heavily offensive representation. One example of harmful representation of gender in media is in The Big Bang Theory.
The Big Bang Theory, for all its popularity, was also incredibly problematic. It portrayed the male characters as stereotypical 'nerds' who needed to be cared for by their significant others. Penny is presented as a stereotypical blonde with low intelligence and desirable body. She is often the butt of many jokes regarding her academic abilities, and while she occasionally acts annoyed, for the most part she seems comfortable with her role. Bernadette is shown acting as a pseudo mother to Howard and Amy is seen as so desperate for a relationship, she is willing to be Sheldon's carer more than his girlfriend.
The show uses the 'nerd' archetype to excuse the misogyny of the four male main characters. In Season 6 episode 12, Sheldon makes a comment to a female coworker about how she isn't succeeding in her work because women are like egg salads on a warm day, "full of eggs and only appealing for a short time". The co-worker complains, but Sheldon is faced with hardly any punishment, which reinforces the idea that him and his sexism are harmless. Raj and Howard are also presented as incredibly creepy. In Season 2 episode 7, they locate a house where America's Next Top Models cast members are living. They then go to the house under the guise of being cable technicians.
Despite being an immensely popular show, the major issues with it are rarely brought into the lime light. This is most likely because of a technique called "Lampshade Hanging". Using this technique, the show actually acknowledges the acts of the characters and even directly calls the out for it. In the episode mentioned above, Howard even draws attention to their disturbing actions, saying "If it's creepy to use the internet, military satellites, and robot aircraft to find a house full of gorgeous young models so I can drop in on them unexpectedly, then fine. I'm creepy". By using this method and showing that the show is aware of what they are doing, it deprives critics of complaints, as the show is aware of its flaws. It can also make it feel much more harmless as, through acknowledging it, the show tells us that to some degree that they know it is wrong.
There are also examples in media of gender misrepresentation outside of misogyny. One would be Scarlett Johansson being cast to play a trans man in an up and coming movie. For the movie "Rub & Tug", Scarlett Johansson was cast to play Dante 'Tex' Gill, a transgender man. This sparked a controversy over whether a cisgender actor should be playing a transgender character. Multiple transgender actors vocalised their frustrations over the casting choice. Trace Lysette tweeted “I wouldn’t be as upset if I was getting in the same rooms as Jennifer Lawrence and Scarlett for cis roles, but we know that’s not the case,". Scarlett Johansson's initial response did not help either as it was incredibly dismissive of the issue.
While characters of all sexualities can be played by any actor, characters of different gender identities can not. A man would not be cast to play a woman's role, so why does this happen? It is likely this is part of a larger issue of Hollywood casting actors from largely represented demographics to play characters from less represented demographics. Some have also said that it is part of a continuous idea that transgender people are just playing dress up as the opposite gender. By having a well known cis woman play the role of a trans man, it perpetuates the mindset that the character isn't really a man, simply a woman pretending to be one. This is incredibly offensive and transgender people rightly feel that their identities are being disrespected and discredited. It is also, as Trace Lysette stated above, an issue of cis actor being able to play trans characters, while trans actors won't even be considered for the role of a cis character. Perhaps if transgender actors were also being cast to play cisgender characters, this wouldn't have been such a controversial matter, but this is not the case.
Despite her flippant response in the beginning, Scarlett Johansson has since dropped the role and publicly apologised. She stated “I have great admiration and love for the trans community and am grateful that the conversation regarding inclusivity in Hollywood continues. While I would have loved the opportunity to bring Dante’s story and transition to life, I understand why many feel he should be portrayed by a transgender person, and I am thankful that this casting debate, albeit controversial, has sparked a larger conversation about diversity and representation in film.”.
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