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Passes the Bechdel test

Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens

2015. Directed by J.J. Abrams, written by Lawrence Kasdan and J.J. Abrams and Michael Arndt.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

3 / 3

Passes

  1. Yes 1. At least two women
    24 women characters. 6 of them speak.
  2. Yes 2. Who talk to each other
    In 1 scene out of 269.
  3. Yes 3. About something besides a man
    In that scene, our script parser found no man named. See the scene.

Second opinion

Agree bechdeltest.com readers give it 3 out of 3.

Poster for Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens

The film

30 years after the defeat of Darth Vader and the Empire, Rey, a scavenger from the planet Jakku, finds a BB-8 droid that knows the whereabouts of the long lost Luke Skywalker. Rey, as well as a rogue stormtrooper and two smugglers, are thrown into the middle of a battle between the Resistance and the daunting legions of the First Order.

Released
18 Dec 2015
Genres
Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Rated
PG-13
IMDb
7.7 / 10
Metascore
80 / 100
Awards
Nominated for 5 Oscars. 64 wins & 140 nominations total
Elsewhere
View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

  • Women
  • Men
  • Not in the cast list
  • Bigger name, more lines
  1. Finn 158 lines, man
  2. Rey 154 lines, woman
  3. Han 142 lines, man
  4. Poe 66 lines, man
  5. Kylo Ren 54 lines, man
  6. Leia 28 lines, woman
  7. General Hux 22 lines, man
  8. Maz 19 lines, woman
  9. Fn-2187 16 lines, man
  10. Snoke 12 lines, man
Full cast, 100 people
  • Daisy Ridley as Rey
  • John Boyega as Finn
  • Oscar Isaac as Poe Dameron
  • Adam Driver as Kylo Ren
  • Carrie Fisher as Princess Leia
  • Harrison Ford as Han Solo
  • Mark Hamill as Luke Skywalker
  • Lupita Nyong'o as Maz Kanata
  • Andy Serkis as Supreme Leader Snoke
  • Domhnall Gleeson as General Hux
  • Anthony Daniels as C-3PO
  • Max von Sydow as Lor San Tekka
  • Peter Mayhew as Chewbacca
  • Gwendoline Christie as Captain Phasma
  • Joonas Suotamo as Chewbacca Double
  • Pip Andersen as Lead Stormtrooper
  • Simon Pegg as Unkar Plutt
  • Kiran Shah as Teedo
  • Sasha Frost as Jakku Villager
  • Pip Torrens as Colonel Kaplan
  • Andrew Jack as Major Ematt
  • Rocky Marshall as Colonel Datoo
  • Greg Grunberg as Snap Wexley
  • Emun Elliott as Brance
  • Brian Vernel as Bala-Tik
  • Yayan Ruhian as Tasu Leech
  • Sebastian Armesto as Lieutenant Mitaka
  • Maisie Richardson-Sellers as Korr Sella
  • Warwick Davis as Wollivan
  • Cailey Fleming as Young Rey
  • Mark Stanley as Knight of Ren
  • Ken Leung as Admiral Statura
  • Iko Uwais as Razoo Quin-Fee
  • Anna Brewster as Bazine Netal
  • Harriet Walter as Dr. Kalonia
  • Tim Rose as Admiral Ackbar
  • Erik Bauersfeld as Admiral Ackbar (voice)
  • Mike Quinn as Nien Nunb
  • Bill Kipsang Rotich as Nein Nunb (voice)
  • Michael Giacchino as FN-3181
  • Nigel Godrich as FN-9330
  • Judah Friedlander as Bar Patron
  • Victor McGuire as Bar Patron
  • Miltos Yerolemou as Bar Patron
  • Francesca Longrigg as Bar Patron
  • D.C. Barns as Bar Patron
  • Matt Johnson as Bar Patron
  • Billie Lourd as Lieutenant Connix
  • Leanne Best as Min Sakul
  • Crystal Clarke as Ensign Goode
  • Jeffery Kissoon as Rear Admiral Guich
  • Claudia Sermbezis as Lema Eelyak
  • Gerald W. Abrams as Captain Cypress
  • Jim McGrath as Vice Admiral Resdox
  • Philicia Saunders as Tabala Zo
  • Morgan Dameron as Commodore Meta
  • Jessica Henwick as Jess Testor
  • Tosin Cole as Lieutenant Bastian
  • James McArdle as Niv Lek
  • Stefan Grube as Yolo Ziff
  • Dixie Arnold as Resistance Soldier
  • Hannah John-Kamen as First Order Officer
  • Tom Edden as First Order Officer
  • Kate Fleetwood as First Order Officer
  • Richard Riddell as First Order Officer
  • Jefferson Hall as First Order Officer
  • Thomas Brodie-Sangster as First Order Officer
  • Jack Laskey as First Order Officer
  • Brian Herring as BB-8
  • Dave Chapman as BB-8
  • Jimmy Vee as R2-D2 (uncredited)
  • Cecep Arif Rahman as Crokind Shand (uncredited)
  • Ian Whyte as Bollie Prindel / Roodown (uncredited)
  • Daniel Craig as Stormtrooper (uncredited)
  • Ewan McGregor as Obi-Wan Kenobi (voice) (uncredited)
  • Frank Oz as Yoda (archive sound) (uncredited)
  • Alec Guinness as Obi-Wan Kenobi (archive sound) (uncredited)
  • Tom Kane as Hosnian Citizen / Starkiller Technician (voice) (uncredited)
  • Catherine Taber as Hangar Officer / Starkiller Technician (voice) (uncredited)
  • Matthew Wood as Ello Asty / Quiggold / Niima Thug (voice) (uncredited)
  • Sam Witwer as Stormtroopers / Star Destroyer PA Announcer / Star Destroyer Officer (voice) (uncredited)
  • Meredith Salenger as Resistance Technician (voice) (uncredited)
  • James Arnold Taylor as First Order Stormtrooper (uncredited)
  • Michael Donovan as Starkiller PA Announcer (voice) (uncredited)
  • Devon Libran as Hangar Officer / Starkiller Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)
  • Robert Stambler as Red Eyed Sand Alien (voice) (uncredited)
  • Verona Blue as Resistance PA Announcer (voice) (uncredited)
  • Fred Tatasciore as Niima Scavenger / Forest Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)
  • Patrick Correll as Resistance Medic (voice) (uncredited)
  • Karen Huie as Niima Scavenger (voice) (uncredited)
  • Orly Schuchmacher as Desert Scavenger (voice) (uncredited)
  • Ben Schwartz as Stormtrooper (uncredited)
  • Mark Dodson as Niima Scavenger (voice) (uncredited)
  • Liang Yang as FN-2199 (uncredited)
  • David Acord as FN-2199 (uncredited)
  • Jamie B. Chambers as Heavy Gunner Stormtrooper (uncredited)
  • David M. Santana as First Order Stormtrooper / Snowtrooper Commander / Heavy Gunner Stormtrooper (uncredited)
  • Kevin Smith as Stormtrooper (voice) (uncredited)
  • Daran Holliman as Mi'no Teest (uncredited)
  • James McGrath as Vice Admiral Resdox

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 6 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 3% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.

Women

Men

Scene 1 Scene 269

Hover, tap or tab to a bar to see those scenes: where they happen and who's talking.

Show the numbers
ScenesWomen's linesMen's lines
1 to 605
7 to 12217
13 to 1833
19 to 2401
25 to 30710
31 to 36521
37 to 4205
43 to 4806
49 to 54234
55 to 601022
61 to 661410
67 to 7266
73 to 7812
79 to 8425
85 to 9044
91 to 961621
97 to 1021842
103 to 1081329
109 to 114513
115 to 120217
121 to 126617
127 to 132922
133 to 1381722
139 to 144102
145 to 15001
151 to 15673
157 to 162317
163 to 168112
169 to 174820
175 to 1801719
181 to 186329
187 to 192512
193 to 198013
199 to 20408
205 to 210311
211 to 21602
217 to 222010
223 to 228711
229 to 23404
235 to 240116
241 to 246317
247 to 25224
253 to 25804
259 to 26454
265 to 26900

The evidence

  • Straight from the script
  • Counted from the script and the credits

Tap an exhibit to open it.

Exhibit A: the passing scene

The scene our parser counted as passing, word for word.
REY: What fight? MAZ: The only fight: against the dark side. Through the ages, I've seen evil take many forms. The Sith. The Empire. Today, it is the First Order.…

Exhibit B: every 100 lines

Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 28 are women's.

217 lines from women, 553 from men.

  • Women
  • Men

Exhibit C: who's in it

24 women and 71 men in the cast. 6 women and 33 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

  • Women
  • Men

Exhibit D: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 23 of 797. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 59 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

  • First line by a woman
  • Longest stretch with no woman speaking

Words spoken

Women speak 26% of the words (1,562), men 74% (4,553). Women have 28% 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

Exhibit F: behind the camera

6 of the 17 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 19% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by
J.J. Abrams (man)
Written by
Michael Arndt (man), Lawrence Kasdan (man), J.J. Abrams (man)
Produced by
Bryan Burk (man), J.J. Abrams (man), Kathleen Kennedy (woman)
Shot by
Dan Mindel (man)
Edited by
Maryann Brandon (woman), Mary Jo Markey (woman)
Music by
John Williams (man)
Production design by
Rick Carter (man), Darren Gilford (man)
Costumes by
Michael Kaplan (man)
Cast by
Nina Gold (woman), April Webster (woman), Alyssa Weisberg (woman)

The crew, department by department

  • Art

    8 women, 26 men, 36 not listed

  • Visual Effects

    2 women, 22 men, 15 not listed

  • Production

    7 women, 14 men, 16 not listed

  • Directing

    3 women, 10 men, 21 not listed

  • Other crew

    3 women, 21 men, 8 not listed

  • Camera

    2 women, 11 men, 4 not listed

  • Costume & Make-Up

    3 women, 4 men, 9 not listed

  • Sound

    0 women, 12 men, 1 not listed

  • Women
  • Men
  • Gender not listed on TMDB

Exhibit G: how old the stars were

Women: 38 on average. Men: 44 on average. The top-billed cast, at the film's release.

Women

Daisy Ridley 23, Lupita Nyong'o 32, Carrie Fisher 59

Men

John Boyega 23, Adam Driver 32, Domhnall Gleeson 32, Oscar Isaac 36, Andy Serkis 51, Mark Hamill 64, Harrison Ford 73

Exhibit H: the money

It made 8.4 times what it cost.

Budget
$245 million
Box office
$2.1 billion

From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.

About this analysis

Our parser read the script: 269 scenes and 797 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works

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