Passes the Bechdel test
La La Land
2016. Directed by Damien Chazelle, written by Damien Chazelle.
The Bechdel test
Bechdel score
3 / 3
Passes
-
Yes
1. At least two women
61 women characters. 14 of them speak. -
Yes
2. Who talk to each other
In 7 scenes out of 113. -
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
Aspiring actress serves lattes to movie stars in between auditions and jazz musician Sebastian scrapes by playing cocktail-party gigs in dingy bars. But as success mounts, they are faced with decisions that fray the fragile fabric of their love affair, and the dreams they worked so hard to maintain in each other threaten to rip them apart.
- Released
- 25 Dec 2016
- Genres
- Comedy, Drama, Music
- Rated
- PG-13
- IMDb
- 8 / 10
- Metascore
- 94 / 100
- Awards
- Won 6 Oscars. 247 wins & 316 nominations total
- Elsewhere
- View on IMDb
Starring, by lines spoken
- Women
- Men
- Not in the cast list
- Bigger name, more lines
- Mia 213 lines, woman
- Sebastian 207 lines, man
- Laura 40 lines, woman
- Keith 21 lines, man
- Tracy 12 lines, woman
- Mia'S Mom 9 lines, woman
- Alexis 8 lines, woman
- Greg 7 lines, man
- Mia'S Dad 7 lines, man
- Boss 6 lines
Full cast, 183 people
- Ryan Gosling as Sebastian
- Emma Stone as Mia
- John Legend as Keith
- Rosemarie DeWitt as Laura
- Finn Wittrock as Greg
- Callie Hernandez as Tracy
- Sonoya Mizuno as Caitlin
- Jessica Rothe as Alexis
- Tom Everett Scott as David
- Josh Pence as Josh
- J.K. Simmons as Bill
- Amiée Conn as Famous Actress
- Terry Walters as Linda (Coffee Shop Manager)
- Thom Shelton as Coffee Spiller
- Cinda Adams as Casting Director (First Audition)
- Claudine Claudio as Karen (Waitress)
- Jason Fuchs as Carlo
- D.A. Wallach as 80's singer
- Trevor Lissauer as Valet
- Olivia Hamilton as Bree (Gluten Free Girl)
- Anna Chazelle as Sarah (Pilot Casting Assistant)
- Marius de Vries as Clyde (Pilot Director)
- Nicole Coulon as Josh's Fiancée
- Damon Gupton as Harry
- Christopher Michael Stevens as Malcolm
- Keith Harris as Cole
- Kaveh Rastegar as Tom
- Shaylah J. Stevens as Echo Backup Singer
- Natalie Imani as Echo Backup Singer
- Briana Lee as Echo Backup Singer
- David Douglas as Radio DJ
- Miles Anderson as Alistair (Photographer)
- Bobo Chang as Photographer's Assistant
- Meagen Fay as Mia's Mom
- Robert Haynes as Angry Neighbor
- John Hindman as Frank (Director)
- Valarie Rae Miller as Amy Brandt
- Nicole Wolf as Amy Brandt's Assistant
- Corrin Evans as New Barista
- Kiff VandenHeuvel as New Coffee Shop Manager
- Camryn Ray Cavaliero as Mia's Daughter
- Zoë Hall as Chelsea
- Dempsey Pappion as Seb's Jazz Club Employee
- Clifton 'Fou Fou' Eddie as Seb's Drummer
- Cal Bennett as Seb's Sax Player
- Nedra Wheeler as Seb's Bassist
- Javier Gonzalez as Seb's Trumpeter
- Khirye Tyler as Seb's Pianst
- Arthur Horowitz as Fantasy Baby
- Reshma Gajjar as Traffic Dancer - Girl #1
- Hunter Hamilton as Traffic Dancer - 1st Man
- Damian Gomez as Traffic Dancer - 2nd Man
- Candice Coke as Traffic Dancer - Girl #2
- Amanda Balen as Traffic Dancer - Conductor
- Mecca Vazie Andrews as Traffic Dancer
- Lou Becker as Traffic Dancer
- Doran Butler as Traffic Dancer
- Matt Cady as Traffic Dancer
- Dominic Chaiduang as Traffic Dancer
- Cindera Che as Traffic Dancer
- Carol Connors as Traffic Dancer
- Patrick Cook as Traffic Dancer
- Aaron 'Deuce' Cooke as Traffic Dancer
- Tiffany Daniels as Traffic Dancer
- Bubba Dean Rambo as Traffic Dancer
- Nick Drago as Traffic Dancer
- Shaun Evaristo as Traffic Dancer
- Dana Fukagawa as Traffic Dancer
- Daniel Gaymon as Traffic Dancer
- Liz Imperio as Traffic Dancer
- Casey Johansen as Traffic Dancer
- Cris Judd as Traffic Dancer
- Yoori Kim as Traffic Dancer
- Marissa Labog as Traffic Dancer
- Stephanie Landwehr as Traffic Dancer
- Chris Moss as Traffic Dancer
- Clarice Ordaz as Traffic Dancer
- Nathan Prevost as Traffic Dancer
- Bradley M. Rapier as Traffic Dancer
- Britt Stewart as Traffic Dancer
- Melinda Sullivan as Traffic Dancer
- Dana Wilson as Traffic Dancer
- Terrance Yates as Traffic Dancer
- Tracy Shibata as Hollywood Party Dancer - Girl #1
- Dominique Domingo as Hollywood Party Dancer - Girl #2
- Asiel Hardison as Hollywood Party Dancer - Agent #1
- Corey Anderson as Hollywood Party Dancer - Agent #2
- Nick Baga as Hollywood Party Dancer - Agent #3
- Scott Hislop as Hollywood Party Dancer - Creepy Guy
- Leah Adler as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Noel Bajandas as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Khasan Brailsford as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Denzel Chisolm as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Montana Efaw as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Krystal Ellsworth as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Natalie Gilmore as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Shannon Holtzapffel as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Galen Hooks as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Jeremy Hudson as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Morgan Larson as Hollywood Party Dancer
- George Lawrence Jr. as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Sarah Mitchell as Hollywood Party Dancer
- KC Monnie as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Scott Myrick as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Cassidy Noblett as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Brittany Parks as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Víctor Rojas as Hollywood Party Dancer
- Tony Bellissimo as Echo Dancer
- Ryan Ramirez as Echo Dancer
- Catalina Cat Rendic as Echo Dancer
- Bryan Tanaka as Echo Dancer
- Ava Bernstine-Mitchell as Restaurant Dancer
- Mario Diaz as Restaurant Dancer
- Quinn Lipton as Restaurant Dancer
- Gakenia Muigai as Restaurant Dancer
- Michael Stein as Restaurant Dancer
- Becca Sweitzer as Restaurant Dancer
- Samantha Abrantes as Epilogue Dancer
- Monie Adamson as Epilogue Dancer
- Matthew Aylward as Epilogue Dancer
- McKenzie Anderson as Epilogue Dancer
- Sybil Azur as Epilogue Dancer
- Demian Boergadine as Epilogue Dancer
- Pamela Chu as Epilogue Dancer
- Lexie Contursi as Epilogue Dancer
- Mallauri Esquibel as Epilogue Dancer
- Michael Higgins as Epilogue Dancer
- Tara Nicole Hughes as Epilogue Dancer
- Chris Jarosz as Epilogue Dancer
- Kayla Kalbfleisch as Epilogue Dancer
- Matthew Kazmierczak as Epilogue Dancer
- Paul Kirkland as Epilogue Dancer
- Megan Lawson as Epilogue Dancer
- Anthony Marciona as Epilogue Dancer
- Michael Munday as Epilogue Dancer
- Martha Nichols as Epilogue Dancer
- Ryan Novak as Epilogue Dancer
- Brandon O'Neal as Epilogue Dancer
- Bill Prudich as Epilogue Dancer
- Eartha Robinson as Epilogue Dancer
- Robert Roldan as Epilogue Dancer
- Julie Schmid as Epilogue Dancer
- Chelsea Thedinga as Epilogue Dancer
- Danny Valle as Epilogue Dancer
- Gustavo Vargas as Epilogue Dancer
- Emily Williams as Epilogue Dancer
- Bruce Davison as Mia's Father (uncredited)
- Bunny Levine as Movie Theatre Cashier (uncredited)
- Hemky Madera as Jimmy (uncredited)
- Sandra Rosko as Dream Audience (uncredited)
- Tommy Cooley as Kissing Couple (uncredited)
- Kristin Slaysman as Coffee Shop Customer (uncredited)
- Ana Flavia Gavlak as Young Actress (uncredited)
- Noah James as Young Man (uncredited)
- Ottavio Taddei as Swing Dancer (uncredited)
- Destinee Handly as Barista (uncredited)
- Steffen Dziczek as Moviegoer (uncredited)
- Vince Donvito as Coffee Guy (uncredited)
- Patty Tobin as Casting Director (uncredited)
- Crystal Nichol as Audition Actress (uncredited)
- Kaye L. Morris as Producer's Girlfriend (uncredited)
- Trent Kerpsack as Sailor (uncredited)
- Holly Houk as Kissing Couple (uncredited)
- Andrea Lareo as Casting Assistant (uncredited)
- April Martucci as Audition Girl (uncredited)
- Heather Turman as Young Man's Date (uncredited)
- Jenna Curtis as Waitress (uncredited)
- Jordan Ray Fox as Nathan (uncredited)
- Anna Lunberry as Publicist (uncredited)
- Christopher Aber as Cowboy (uncredited)
- Margaret Newborn as Jazz Club Goer (uncredited)
- C.J. Stussi as Espresso Coffee Shop Customer (uncredited)
- Cameron Brinkman as Jazz Club Patron (uncredited)
- Kristin Elliott as Audition Actress (uncredited)
- Lynn Moore as Jazz Club Patron (uncredited)
- Nilla Elizabeth Watkins as Coffee Shop Customer (uncredited)
- Andres Perez-Molina as Coffee Shop Customer (uncredited)
- Shannon Leann as Hollywood Starlet (uncredited)
- Milica Govich as Coffee Shop Customer #2 (uncredited)
- Frederick Keeve as Restaurant Patron (uncredited)
- Amanda Fields as Red Head Actress (uncredited)
- Hunter Clowdus as Lifeguard (uncredited)
- Jessica Rotter as Singer (uncredited)
Who talks, scene by scene
Lines of dialogue in every 3 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 5% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.
Women
Men
Scene 1 Scene 113
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 3 | 8 | 3 |
| 4 to 6 | 27 | 0 |
| 7 to 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 10 to 12 | 2 | 0 |
| 13 to 15 | 18 | 20 |
| 16 to 18 | 2 | 6 |
| 19 to 21 | 20 | 13 |
| 22 to 24 | 25 | 21 |
| 25 to 27 | 27 | 27 |
| 28 to 30 | 24 | 7 |
| 31 to 33 | 7 | 0 |
| 34 to 36 | 5 | 9 |
| 37 to 39 | 1 | 4 |
| 40 to 42 | 1 | 0 |
| 43 to 45 | 8 | 0 |
| 46 to 48 | 21 | 34 |
| 49 to 51 | 0 | 13 |
| 52 to 54 | 0 | 0 |
| 55 to 57 | 0 | 0 |
| 58 to 60 | 0 | 0 |
| 61 to 63 | 0 | 0 |
| 64 to 66 | 0 | 0 |
| 67 to 69 | 22 | 2 |
| 70 to 72 | 28 | 35 |
| 73 to 75 | 0 | 7 |
| 76 to 78 | 0 | 0 |
| 79 to 81 | 6 | 6 |
| 82 to 84 | 8 | 4 |
| 85 to 87 | 25 | 26 |
| 88 to 90 | 0 | 0 |
| 91 to 93 | 20 | 16 |
| 94 to 96 | 2 | 1 |
| 97 to 99 | 0 | 8 |
| 100 to 102 | 0 | 0 |
| 103 to 105 | 3 | 5 |
| 106 to 108 | 2 | 6 |
| 109 to 111 | 0 | 0 |
| 112 to 113 | 1 | 1 |
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.
MIA: And I swear to God, she was wrecked. It was pure lunacy. Oh God, I know... Revision 4. MIA: No, no, Turner's fine. So you -- are you waiting `til Denver to tell her...? Oh. I see... No, you're right. I understand. Ok... I just... Oh… MIA: No, I'm happy for you... I -- I just -- CASTING DIRECTOR: One second.
TRACY: Holy Mother of God. TRACY: Ever heard of a vent? MIA: I wanted to give you an entrance. ALEXIS: Mia! How'd it go?
MIA: Into...? Oh -- I -- my aunt was an actress. She was in this traveling theater company... And there was this little library across the street… DIRECTOR: Cut! MIA: I started putting on plays in my garage. I'd write the scripts and print up programs, and she'd give me props to use from wherever she'd jus…
DIRECTOR: Whenever you're ready. MIA: Two options. Follow my rules, or follow my rules. Kapish? You want to bully, you'd best be ready to get bullied -- DIRECTOR: Thanks. MIA: I can do it another way --
TRACY: What's that? TRACY: Is that a script? MIA: It's a play. I'm going to put it on myself. ALEXIS: A play? You better give us roles!
Exhibit B: every 100 lines
Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 53 are women's.
313 lines from women, 274 from men.
- Women
- Men
Exhibit C: who's in it
61 women and 59 men in the cast. 14 women and 13 men from it get lines.
Characters
With lines
- Women
- Men
Exhibit D: who gets heard
A woman speaks the first line.
The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 21 lines.
Every line of dialogue, first to last
- First line by a woman
- Longest stretch with no woman speaking
Words spoken
Women speak 53% of the words (2,621), men 47% (2,359).
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
10
Two men
8
Exhibit F: behind the camera
3 of the 13 people in these jobs are women.
Across the whole crew, 21% of the people whose gender is listed are women.
- Directed by
- Damien Chazelle (man)
- Written by
- Damien Chazelle (man)
- Produced by
- Jordan Horowitz (man), Marc Platt (man), Fred Berger (man), Gary Gilbert (man)
- Shot by
- Linus Sandgren (man)
- Edited by
- Tom Cross (man)
- Music by
- Justin Hurwitz (man)
- Production design by
- David Wasco (man)
- Costumes by
- Mary Zophres (woman)
- Cast by
- Deborah Aquila (woman), Tricia Wood (woman)
The crew, department by department
-
Other crew
5 women, 25 men, 32 not listed
-
Sound
4 women, 18 men, 9 not listed
-
Art
1 women, 12 men, 14 not listed
-
Costume & Make-Up
6 women, 4 men, 16 not listed
-
Production
5 women, 9 men, 10 not listed
-
Visual Effects
0 women, 7 men, 2 not listed
-
Lighting
0 women, 2 men, 6 not listed
-
Camera
0 women, 4 men, 3 not listed
- Women
- Men
- Gender not listed on TMDB
Exhibit G: how old the stars were
Women: 32 on average. Men: 37 on average.
The top-billed cast, at the film's release.
Women
Emma Stone 28, Callie Hernandez 28, Jessica Rothe 29, Sonoya Mizuno 30, Rosemarie DeWitt 45
Men
Finn Wittrock 32, Josh Pence 34, Ryan Gosling 36, John Legend 37, Tom Everett Scott 46
Exhibit H: the money
It made 17.0 times what it cost.
- Budget
- $30 million
- Box office
- $509 million
From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.
About this analysis
Our parser read the script: 113 scenes and 617 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works
