Passes the Bechdel test

The 40-Year-Old Virgin

2005. Directed by Judd Apatow, written by Judd Apatow and Steve Carell.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

3 / 3

Passes

  1. Yes 1. At least two women
    44 women characters. 9 of them speak.
  2. Yes 2. Who talk to each other
    In 2 scenes out of 96.
  3. 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.

Poster for The 40-Year-Old Virgin

The film

Forty-year-old Andy, an electronics store shipping clerk, is a stereotypical geek, who plays video games and takes care of his collectible action figures. He has no real friends and spends most of his time away from work by himself. Despite having an interest in the opposite sex philosophically as witnessed by his constant and uncontrollable morning erections, he is still a virgin. He never planned not to have sex, but it became more and more difficult to have that first experience as he got older, to the point where, to him, it became a reality for his life. When his work colleagues find out, some mock and ridicule him, while a small group comprised of Dave, Jay and Cal take it upon themselves to help him get laid, despite each of three having their own relationship issue making them perhaps not the best people to provide advice or assistance. Andy also gets some unexpected suggestions from some standing on the sidelines of his life. Beyond that advice, Andy has to be the one to take the ultimate step to reality, he not only having no practical experience, but also no theoretical experience in that he doesn't even watch or have interest in porn or masturbate. Some of the advice he receives centers on the actual woman who should be his first time. Regardless of that advice, he decides that the woman he truly wants is Trish, a specialty retailer with a somewhat useless bricks and mortar outlet across the street from the electronics store. As Andy pursues then eventually falls for Trish, he has to decide how much of his true self he will divulge to her.

Released
19 Aug 2005
Genres
Comedy, Romance
Rated
R
IMDb
7.1 / 10
Metascore
73 / 100
Awards
10 wins & 19 nominations total
Elsewhere
View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

  • Women
  • Men
  • Not in the cast list
  • Bigger name, more lines
  1. Andy 395 lines, man
  2. Jay 119 lines, man
  3. Trish 119 lines, woman
  4. David 96 lines, man
  5. Cal 47 lines, man
  6. Nicky 34 lines, woman
  7. Beth 28 lines, woman
  8. Marla 19 lines, woman
  9. Judith 14 lines
  10. Beautiful Woman 13 lines, woman
Full cast, 73 people
  • Steve Carell as Andy Stitzer
  • Catherine Keener as Trish Piedmont
  • Paul Rudd as David
  • Romany Malco as Jay
  • Seth Rogen as Cal
  • Elizabeth Banks as Beth
  • Leslie Mann as Nicky
  • Jane Lynch as Paula
  • Gerry Bednob as Mooj
  • Shelley Malil as Haziz
  • Kat Dennings as Marla
  • Jordan Masterson as Mark
  • Chelsea Smith as Julia
  • Jonah Hill as eBay Customer
  • Erica Vittina Phillips as Jill
  • Marika Domińczyk as Bernadette
  • Mindy Kaling as Amy
  • Mo Collins as Gina
  • Gillian Vigman as Woman at Speed Dating
  • Kimberly Page as Woman at Speed Dating
  • Siena Goines as Woman at Speed Dating
  • Charlie Hartsock as Speed Dating MC
  • Nancy Carell as Health Clinic Counselor
  • Cedric Yarbrough as Dad at Health Clinic
  • David Koechner as Dad at Health Clinic
  • Jeff Kahn as Dad at Health Clinic
  • Nick Lashaway as Boy at Health Clinic
  • Loren Berman as Boy at Health Clinic
  • Julian Foster as Boy at Health Clinic
  • Loudon Wainwright III as Priest
  • Lee Weaver as Joe
  • Gloria Helena Jones as Sara
  • Jazzmun as Prostitute
  • Miki Mia as Waxing Lady
  • Denise Meyerson as Robin
  • Shannon Bradley as Bar Girl
  • Brianna Brown as Bar Girl
  • Liz Carey as Bar Girl
  • Elizabeth DeCicco as Bar Girl
  • Hilary Shepard as Bar Girl
  • Barret Swatek as Bar Girl
  • Carla Gallo as Toe-Sucking Girl
  • Michael Bierman as 16 Year-Old Andy
  • Marisa Guterman as Girl with Braces
  • Stormy Daniels as Porn Star
  • Kevin Hart as Smart Tech Customer
  • Wayne Federman as Smart Tech Customer
  • Ron Marasco as Smart Tech Customer
  • Joseph T. Mastrolia as Smart Tech Customer
  • Kate Luyben as Woman Buying Videotapes
  • Joe Nuñez as Man Buffing Floor
  • Matthew McKane as Motorist
  • Rose Abdoo as Mother at Restaurant
  • Steve Bannos as Father at Restaurant
  • Brooke Hamlin as Daughter at Restaurant
  • Miyoko Shimosawa as Waitress at Restaurant
  • Marilyn Dodds Frank as Woman Who Bought Television
  • Ann Christine as Kim (uncredited)
  • Brandon Killham as Young Andy (uncredited)
  • Nicole Randall Johnson as Speed Dater (uncredited)
  • Suzy Nakamura as Speed Dater (uncredited)
  • Jenna Fischer as Woman #1 (uncredited)
  • Stephanie Lemelin as Woman #2 (uncredited)
  • Jamie Elle Mann as Newswoman (uncredited)
  • Leah McCormick as Girl in Electronic Store (uncredited)
  • Samantha J. Reese as Bar Patron (uncredited)
  • Brittney Skye as Porn Actress (uncredited)
  • Wyatt Smith as Boy at Wedding (uncredited)
  • Kira Turnage as Customer (uncredited)
  • Penny Vital as Redhead (uncredited)
  • Christa Nicole Wells as Shopping Girl (uncredited)
  • Amy Rider as Gal (uncredited)
  • Phyllis Smith as Andy's mother

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 2 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 6% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.

Women

Men

Scene 1 Scene 96

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 201
3 to 400
5 to 600
7 to 800
9 to 10310
11 to 12019
13 to 14095
15 to 16010
17 to 18026
19 to 2001
21 to 22119
23 to 24011
25 to 2665
27 to 282815
29 to 30016
31 to 3200
33 to 34718
35 to 3608
37 to 38422
39 to 40018
41 to 421336
43 to 44017
45 to 461227
47 to 481318
49 to 501411
51 to 5248
53 to 5400
55 to 561318
57 to 58123
59 to 601415
61 to 621510
63 to 64020
65 to 6622
67 to 6800
69 to 7021
71 to 72126
73 to 741512
75 to 76614
77 to 78931
79 to 802034
81 to 8243
83 to 8421
85 to 8642
87 to 88108
89 to 9065
91 to 92010
93 to 941518
95 to 9634

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.

TRISH: I'm sure it will be worth the wait. MARLA: What is going on in here?! TRISH: What are you doing? MARLA: What are you doing? I can 1 t believe you are allowed to have sex but I'm not! That is sooo unfair!!!
MARLA: You 1 re not doing magic, are you? JULIA: I love magic. Where did it go? JULIA: How did you do that?

Exhibit B: every 100 lines

Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 27 are women's.

247 lines from women, 668 from men.

  • Women
  • Men

Exhibit C: who's in it

44 women and 27 men in the cast. 9 women and 7 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

  • Women
  • Men

Exhibit D: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 9 of 977. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 176 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

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

Words spoken

Women speak 29% of the words (2,582), men 71% (6,375). Women have 27% of the lines, so their lines run longer 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

4 of the 13 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 23% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by
Judd Apatow (man)
Written by
Judd Apatow (man), Steve Carell (man)
Produced by
Judd Apatow (man), Shauna Robertson (woman), Clayton Townsend (man)
Shot by
Jack N. Green (man)
Edited by
Brent White (man)
Music by
Lyle Workman (man)
Production design by
Jackson De Govia (man)
Costumes by
Debra McGuire (woman)
Cast by
Marla Garlin (woman), Allison Jones (woman)

The crew, department by department

  • Other crew

    4 women, 12 men, 4 not listed

  • Production

    3 women, 8 men, 1 not listed

  • Camera

    0 women, 6 men, 3 not listed

  • Directing

    1 women, 3 men

  • Art

    1 women, 2 men

  • Sound

    1 women, 2 men

  • Costume & Make-Up

    1 women, 1 men

  • Writing

    0 women, 2 men

  • Women
  • Men
  • Gender not listed on TMDB

Exhibit G: how old the stars were

Women: 39 on average. Men: 39 on average. The top-billed cast, at the film's release.

Women

Elizabeth Banks 31, Leslie Mann 33, Jane Lynch 45, Catherine Keener 46

Men

Seth Rogen 23, Paul Rudd 36, Romany Malco 36, Shelley Malil 40, Steve Carell 42, Gerry Bednob 55

Exhibit H: the money

It made 6.8 times what it cost.

Budget
$26 million
Box office
$177 million

From TMDB, not adjusted for inflation.

About this analysis

Our parser read the script: 96 scenes and 977 lines of dialogue. The bechdeltest.com rating comes from that site’s readers. How the test works

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