Passes the Bechdel test
Asteroid City
2023. Directed by Wes Anderson, written by Wes Anderson and Roman Coppola.
The Bechdel test
Bechdel score
3 / 3
Passes
-
Yes
1. At least two women
29 women characters. 19 of them speak. -
Yes
2. Who talk to each other
In 6 scenes out of 49. -
Yes
3. About something besides a man
In those scenes, our script parser found no man named. See the scene.
Second opinion
Agree bechdeltest.com readers give it 3 out of 3.
The film
Asteroid City: a fictional American desert town, circa 1955. Junior Stargazers and Space Cadets from across the country assemble for the annual Asteroid Day celebration but the scholarly competition is spectacularly upended by world-changing events. Equal parts comedy, drama, and romance. Directed by Wes Anderson and featuring an all-star cast including Jason Schwartzman, Scarlett Johansson, and Tom Hanks.
- Released
- 23 Jun 2023
- Genres
- Comedy, Drama, Romance
- Rated
- PG-13
- IMDb
- 6.4 / 10
- Metascore
- 76 / 100
- Awards
- 4 wins & 86 nominations total
- Elsewhere
- View on IMDb
Starring, by lines spoken
- Women
- Men
- Not in the cast list
- Bigger name, more lines
- Augie 120 lines, man
- Midge 73 lines, woman
- Woodrow 55 lines, man
- Stanley 52 lines, man
- General Gibson 44 lines, man
- Playwright 37 lines
- Dr. Hickenlooper 34 lines, woman
- Actor/Augie 29 lines, man
- Dinah 28 lines, woman
- Director 27 lines
Full cast, 157 people
- Jason Schwartzman as Augie Steenbeck
- Scarlett Johansson as Midge Campbell
- Tom Hanks as Stanley Zak
- Jeffrey Wright as General Gibson
- Tilda Swinton as Dr. Hickenlooper
- Bryan Cranston as The Host
- Edward Norton as Conrad Earp
- Adrien Brody as Schubert Green
- Liev Schreiber as J.J. Kellogg
- Hope Davis as Sandy Borden
- Steve Park as Roger Cho
- Rupert Friend as Montana
- Maya Hawke as June Douglas
- Steve Carell as The Motel Manager
- Matt Dillon as The Mechanic
- Willem Dafoe as Saltzburg Keitel
- Tony Revolori as The Aide-de-Camp
- Jake Ryan as Woodrow
- Grace Edwards as Dinah
- Aristou Meehan as Clifford
- Sophia Lillis as Shelly
- Ethan Josh Lee as Ricky
- Ella Faris as Andromeda
- Gracie Faris as Pandora
- Willan Faris as Cassiopeia
- Deanna Dunagan as Waitress
- Vandi Clark as Cashier
- Pedro Placer as Cook
- Iván López as Romulus
- Aaron Ziobrowski as Bus Driver
- Celia Bermejo as Chaperone
- Zoe Bernard as Bernice
- Brayden Frasure as Billy
- Preston Mota as Dwight
- Kyleigh Fuller as Other Pupil
- Henry Rhoades as Other Pupil
- Jack Eyman as Other Pupil
- Willa Skye as Other Pupil
- Annalise Mackulin as Other Pupil
- Calhoun Metcalf as Other Pupil
- Seu Jorge as Other Cowboy
- Jarvis Cocker as Other Cowboy
- Pere Mallén as Other Cowboy
- Jean-Yves Lozac'h as Other Cowboy
- Damien Bonnard as Bodyguard/Driver
- Ramón Ródenas as Motel Handyman
- Wendy Nottingham as Conrad Earp's Secretary
- Bob Balaban as Larkings Executive
- Fisher Stevens as Detective #1
- Mike Maggart as Detective #2
- Elvira Arce as Mary
- Nicolas Avinée as Military-Science Ensign
- Mohamed Belhadjine as Military-Science Ensign
- Katy Heffernan-Smith as 'Stunt Double'
- Jeff Goldblum as The Alien
- Hong Chau as Polly
- Paul Kynman as Lunky
- Sam Marra as Telephone Booth Guard
- Rita Wilson as Mrs. Weatherford
- Ara Hollyday as Skip Weatherford
- Kenneth Bate as Newsboy
- Christian Bate as Newsboy
- Margot Robbie as The Actress / Wife
- Sandy Hamilton as Backstage Sound Man
- Roberto Moreno de Matias as Engineer
- Francisco Serrano as Pilotman
- Francisco Javier Gomez as Brakeman
- Jacinto Domingo Torija as Hobo
- Alvaro Olivas Marques as Caddy
- Dominique Fouassier as Outlaw on the Run
- Pablo Amoros as Outlaw on the Run
- Yann Tremblay as State Trooper
- Sébastien Fouassier as State Trooper
- Carlos Arimón as State Trooper
- Antonio Graziano as Cameraman
- Nuria Gigorro as Motel Guest (at Shower)
- Raquel Jiménez Martinez as Motel Guest (at Shower)
- Jorge Francisco Mena Garcia as Motel Gardener
- Ana Isabel Comendador Martínez as Motel Maid
- Carlos Saez as T-Shirt Vendor
- Karine Niederman as Bookseller
- Jesús Olivas Santos as Man with Soda
- Jose Luis Figueroa as Hot Dog Stand
- Pascale Coppola as Girl on Blanket
- Matilda Clarke as Girl on Blanket
- Milagros Ahijon as Souvenir Booth
- Paula Domingo as Souvenir Booth
- Crístian García Jiménez as Boy in Spacesuit
- Junior Harris as Ferris Wheel Crew
- Robert Tattam as Ferris Wheel Crew
- Eusebio Mateo Diaz as Ferris Wheel Crew
- Stéphane Bak as Other Actor / Student
- Tom Hudson as Other Actor / Student
- Rodolphe Pauly as Other Actor / Student
- Aimee Mullins as Other Actor / Student
- Valérie Sadoun as Other Actor / Student
- Erica Dorn as Other Actor / Student
- Julia Kruger as Other Actor / Student
- Anisse Elias as Other Actor / Student
- Rebecca Cornford as Other Actor / Student
- Avery Looser as Other Actor / Student
- Guy Trevellyan as Other Actor / Student
- Truman Hanks as Other Actor / Student
- Honor Northridge as Other Actor / Student
- Eliel Ford as Other Actor / Student
- Caris Yeoman as Other Actor / Student
- Yann Pozzoli as Other Actor / Student
- Sonia Gascón as Other Actor / Student
- Mariam Huélamo as Other Actor / Student
- Timothy Cordukes as Other Actor / Student
- Carmen Méndez as Other Actor / Student
- Ainhoa Aldanondo as Other Actor / Student
- Marta Rubio as Other Actor / Student
- Marcos Pereiro as Other Actor / Student
- Susana Hornos as Other Actor / Student
- Alicia San Lorenzo as Other Actor / Student
- Palmira Ferrer as Other Actor / Student
- Jose Antonio Turiégano Carrasco as Scientist
- Pilar Ramírez Escalona as Scientist
- Virginia Romano Álvarez as Scientist
- Milagros Reyeros Ruiz as Scientist
- Jonatan Buitrago Díaz as Scientist
- Ricardo Mohedas Tiñana as Scientist
- Carlos Arroyo as Scientist
- Ismael González Carrasco as Scientist
- Celedonio Guijarro Cano as Scientist / Military-Science Officer
- Juan Abad Molina as Train Porter
- Patricia Colin as Seamstress
- Elena Uriz as Recording Secretary
- Jose Segovia Ortiz as Military-Science Officer
- Enrique Ruiz Granado as Military-Science Officer
- Juan Carlos Iglesias Gómez as Military-Science Officer
- Oscar Minguez Garcia-Patron as Military-Science Officer
- Guillermo García as Military-Science Officer
- David Navarro Romero as Military-Science Guard
- Javier Gigorro de las Peñas as Military-Science Guard
- Alejandro García Aparicio as Military-Science Guard
- Diego Maldonado Davila as Military-Science Guard
- David Rodríguez Moreno as Military-Science Guard
- Mario Perez Lomas as Military-Science Guard
- Alejandro Urbina Escalona as Military-Science Guard
- David Verdejo Escribano as Military-Science Guard
- Adrián Corpa Fernández as Military-Science Guard
- Jesús Jiménez Caler as Military-Science Guard
- Francisco Corrales Rubio as Military-Science Guard
- Sergio Martinez Martinez as Military-Science Guard
- Félix Israel Pinilla de la Guia as Military-Science Guard
- Jay Lau Kam-Ling as Military-Science Guard
- Mario Turiégano Delgado as Military-Science Guard
- Pedro Padilla Perez as Military-Science Guard
- Randall Poster as Parent on TV Screen
- Matthew Frasure as Parent on TV Screen
- Chris Faris as Parent on TV Screen
- Erika Godwin as Parent on TV Screen
- Sara Greisberg as Parent on TV Screen
- Manuela Martinez Zafra as Parent on TV Screen
- Juana Andueza as Chaperone 2 (uncredited)
Who talks, scene by scene
Lines of dialogue in every 2 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 13% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.
Women
Men
Scene 1 Scene 49
Hover, tap or tab to a bar to see those scenes: where they happen and who's talking.
Show the numbers
| Scenes | Women's lines | Men's lines |
|---|---|---|
| 1 to 2 | 0 | 7 |
| 3 to 4 | 0 | 0 |
| 5 to 6 | 6 | 13 |
| 7 to 8 | 14 | 63 |
| 9 to 10 | 14 | 34 |
| 11 to 12 | 21 | 39 |
| 13 to 14 | 18 | 23 |
| 15 to 16 | 18 | 10 |
| 17 to 18 | 8 | 16 |
| 19 to 20 | 12 | 20 |
| 21 to 22 | 20 | 15 |
| 23 to 24 | 0 | 16 |
| 25 to 26 | 12 | 13 |
| 27 to 28 | 26 | 28 |
| 29 to 30 | 1 | 38 |
| 31 to 32 | 14 | 22 |
| 33 to 34 | 2 | 6 |
| 35 to 36 | 2 | 15 |
| 37 to 38 | 29 | 28 |
| 39 to 40 | 18 | 12 |
| 41 to 42 | 1 | 24 |
| 43 to 44 | 8 | 11 |
| 45 to 46 | 0 | 6 |
| 47 to 48 | 6 | 28 |
| 49 to 49 | 0 | 0 |
The evidence
- Straight from the script
- Counted from the script and the credits
Tap an exhibit to open it.
Exhibit A: the passing scenes
The scene our parser counted as passing, word for word.
JUNE: Amen. JUNE: Lunchtime! Line up single-file. MIDGE: My word! It's hot. DINAH: It's the desert. What'd you expect?
SHELLY: Holy Toledo. That's Midge Campbell. SANDY: Where? Who? SHELLY: Right smack in back of you. Don't look.
SANDY J.J: It's not Silly-Putty. I'm sorry, but I doubt it. SANDY: It's called S'morestozium.
PANDORA: Put the potion in it. CASSIOPEIA: Friskity, triskity, briskity, boo; knickerty, knockerty, tockerty, too! And with this spell: Mama comes back -- alive! ANDROMEDA: God save these bones.
DINAH: My mother is a constellation. At least, part of one. A Swiss scientist named a hypothetical star after her. DR. HICKENLOOPER: What's it called? DINAH: Midge Campbell X-9 Major. DR. HICKENLOOPER: I'll look it up.
Exhibit B: every 100 lines
Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 34 are women's.
250 lines from women, 487 from men.
- Women
- Men
Exhibit C: who's in it
29 women and 48 men in the cast. 19 women and 25 men from it get lines.
Characters
With lines
- Women
- Men
Exhibit D: who gets heard
The first woman speaks at line 25 of 843.
The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 49 lines.
Every line of dialogue, first to last
- First line by a woman
- Longest stretch with no woman speaking
Words spoken
Women speak 33% of the words (2,820), men 67% (5,793). Women have 34% of the lines, so their lines run shorter than men's.
Exhibit E: the test the other way
Two named men talk to each other about something besides a woman. It passes the reverse test.
Conversations between two named characters
Two women
18
Two men
32
Exhibit F: behind the camera
1 of the 14 people in these jobs is a woman.
Across the whole crew, 27% of the people whose gender is listed are women.
- Directed by
- Wes Anderson (man)
- Written by
- Wes Anderson (man)
- Story by
- Roman Coppola (man), Wes Anderson (man)
- Produced by
- Jeremy Dawson (man), Steven M. Rales (man), Wes Anderson (man)
- Shot by
- Robert D. Yeoman (man), Tristan Oliver (man)
- Edited by
- Barney Pilling (man)
- Music by
- Alexandre Desplat (man)
- Production design by
- Adam Stockhausen (man)
- Costumes by
- Milena Canonero (woman)
- Cast by
- Douglas Aibel (man)
The crew, department by department
-
Visual Effects
1 women, 6 men, 58 not listed
-
Art
6 women, 13 men, 29 not listed
-
Costume & Make-Up
7 women, 4 men, 22 not listed
-
Production
4 women, 10 men, 18 not listed
-
Other crew
1 women, 7 men, 15 not listed
-
Lighting
0 women, 1 men, 15 not listed
-
Sound
1 women, 13 men, 2 not listed
-
Directing
4 women, 3 men, 8 not listed
- Women
- Men
- Gender not listed on TMDB
Exhibit G: how old the stars were
Women: 53 on average. Men: 56 on average.
The top-billed cast, at the film's release.
Women
Scarlett Johansson 38, Hope Davis 59, Tilda Swinton 62
Men
Jason Schwartzman 42, Adrien Brody 50, Edward Norton 53, Liev Schreiber 55, Jeffrey Wright 57, Tom Hanks 66, Bryan Cranston 67
Exhibit H: the money
It made 2.2 times what it cost.
- Budget
- $25 million
- Box office
- $53.9 million
From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.
About this analysis
Our parser read the script: 49 scenes and 843 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works
