Karen McNally ed., "Women in Hollywood's Dream Factory: Tales of Inequality, Abuse, and Resistance" (U Illinois Press, 2026)
About this episode
Karen McNally discusses her edited collection on women's experiences of inequality and resistance in Hollywood.
The #MeToo revelations put a twenty-first-century stamp on the age-old story of women’s mistreatment in Hollywood. In Women in Hollywood's Dream Factory: Tales of Inequality, Abuse, and Resistance (U Illinois Press, 2026) Karen McNally edits a collection focused on examining and revising film history in the aftermath of the women’s stories, past and present, that have come to light.The collection begins with essays on the interplay between reality and imagination in narratives and representations of women’s experiences of unequal treatment. In Part 2, contributors discuss how the gendered attitudes of the media’s stories enable inequality in Hollywood and look at the forces that arise whenever women resist these media assaults. The next section addresses the structures that built the inequalities and mistreatment while Part 4 revisits established narratives to challenge, renew, and expand upon our understanding of film history through women’s stories. Essays in the final section address the combination of inequality and resistance that defines women’s experiences in Hollywood. Editor of book: Karen McNally is Professor of American Film, Television and Cultural History at London…
People in this episode
Guest: Karen McNally
Topics covered
- women in Hollywood
- inequality
- abuse
- resistance
- film history
- gendered attitudes
Keywords
- #MeToo
- Hollywood
- film history
- gender
- inequality
- abuse
- resistance
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: U Illinois Press
Books & works: Women in Hollywood's Dream Factory: Tales of Inequality, Abuse, and Resistance
Places: London Metropolitan University
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