Passes the Bechdel test

The Way Back

Name: The Way Back
Released: 2020

2020. Directed by Gavin O'Connor, written by Brad Ingelsby.

The Bechdel test

Bechdel score

3 / 3

Passes

Yes 1. At least two women
17 women characters. 7 of them speak.
Yes 2. Who talk to each other
In 1 scene out of 114.
Yes 3. About something besides a man
In that scene, our script parser found no man named. See the scene.

Second opinion

Not rated bechdeltest.com readers haven't rated this film.

The film

Back in high school, Jack Cunningham had everything going for him. A basketball phenom, he could have punched his ticket to college or even the pros, but, instead, he chose to walk away from the game, forfeiting his future. Jack's glory days are long gone...but, as it turns out, not forgotten. Years later, he gets the chance to take back his life when he is asked to coach the struggling basketball team at his alma mater. Jack reluctantly accepts, surprising no one more than himself, and as the boys start to come together as a team and win, he may get his last shot at redemption.

Released: 06 Mar 2020
Genres: Drama, Sport
Rated: R
IMDb: 6.7 / 10
Metascore: 66 / 100
Awards: 6 nominations total
Elsewhere: View on IMDb

Starring, by lines spoken

Women
Men
Not in the cast list
Bigger name, more lines

Jack 386 lines, man
Dan 62 lines, man
Angela 56 lines, woman
Diane 30 lines, woman
Brandon 25 lines, man
Beth 24 lines, woman
Doc 23 lines, man
Marcus 20 lines, man
Susan 19 lines, woman
Father Tierney 18 lines, man

Full cast, 64 people

Ben Affleck as Jack Cunningham
Al Madrigal as Dan
Michaela Watkins as Beth
Janina Gavankar as Angela
Glynn Turman as Doc
Melvin Gregg as Marcus Parrish
Brandon Wilson as Brandon Durrett
Will Ropp as Kenny Dawes
Fernando Luis Vega as Sam Garcia
Charles Lott, Jr. as Chubbs Hendricks
Ben Irving as Bobby Freeze
Da'Vinchi as Devon Childress
John Aylward as Father Edward Devine
T.K. Carter as Russ
Rachael Carpani as Diane
Todd Stashwick as Kurt
Nancy Linehan Charles as Anne
Dan Lauria as Gerry Norris
Chris Bruno as Sal
Matthew Glave as Coach Lombardo
Jeremy Ratchford as Matty (Bartender)
Jayne Taini as Susan Norris
Jeremy Radin as Father Mark Whelan
Nico David as Ryan
Emelia Golfieri as Sarah
Layla Golfieri as Sarah
Sal Velez Jr. as Miguel
Yeniffer Behrens as Sofia
Eric Tate as Sully - Ref #2
Christine Horn as Doctor
Josh Latzer as Construction Worker #1
Manny Streetz as Construction Worker #2
Justice Alan as David
Jay Abdo as Liquor Store Owner
Joshua Hubbard as Lead Referee
James P. Harkins as Burly Man
Mike G. as Employee
April Adams as Betty
Chieko Hidaka as Haley
Bronwen O'Connor as Student
Charlotte Evelyn Williams as Student
Kayla Díaz as Student
Doc Jacobs as Trinity Coach
Marlene Forte as Gale
Shay Roundtree as Ken
Chad Mountain as Pat
Sandy Fletcher as Summit Coach
Noah Ballou as Opposing Coach
Cynthia Rose Hall as Female Friend - Nancy
Calvin Barber as Referee
Dino Lauro as Fish Scale Operator
Roman Mathis as Bishop Bench Player
Herbert Morales as Bishop Bench Player
Mateo Ortiz as Bishop Bench Player
Tyler O'Malley as Bishop Bench Player
Tom Archdeacon as Ethan (uncredited)
Brian Nuesi as Basketball Player 7 (uncredited)
Edelyn Okano as Denise (uncredited)
Carly Schneider as Cheerleader (uncredited)
Caleb Thomas as Mike Ball Boy (uncredited)
Hayes MacArthur as Eric (uncredited)
Alexander Tassopoulos as Basketball Player
Mason Blomberg as Birthday Party Guest (uncredited)
Bryan Sapphire as Birthday Party Magician (uncredited)

Who talks, scene by scene

Lines of dialogue in every 3 scenes, start to finish. Women above the line, men below. 8% of lines come from characters we couldn't match to the cast list and aren't shown.

Women

Men

Scene 1 Scene 114

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	0	4
4 to 6	26	50
7 to 9	0	6
10 to 12	0	0
13 to 15	0	0
16 to 18	2	10
19 to 21	16	28
22 to 24	1	1
25 to 27	7	32
28 to 30	0	25
31 to 33	0	55
34 to 36	0	12
37 to 39	0	21
40 to 42	3	23
43 to 45	0	64
46 to 48	30	22
49 to 51	0	16
52 to 54	0	20
55 to 57	0	48
58 to 60	2	22
61 to 63	11	18
64 to 66	11	10
67 to 69	0	38
70 to 72	15	33
73 to 75	0	34
76 to 78	0	1
79 to 81	0	5
82 to 84	0	4
85 to 87	0	9
88 to 90	0	4
91 to 93	0	16
94 to 96	19	20
97 to 99	0	11
100 to 102	3	3
103 to 105	1	15
106 to 108	2	17
109 to 111	0	4
112 to 114	5	8

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.

BETH: That thing smells. SARAH: Like butts. BETH: Anyone need a drink?

Exhibit B: every 100 lines

Out of every 100 lines with a known speaker, 18 are women's.

154 lines from women, 709 from men.

Women
Men

Exhibit C: who's in it

17 women and 41 men in the cast. 7 women and 30 men from it get lines.

Characters

With lines

Women
Men

Exhibit D: who gets heard

The first woman speaks at line 13 of 933. The longest stretch with no woman speaking runs 146 lines.

Every line of dialogue, first to last

First line by a woman
Longest stretch with no woman speaking

Words spoken

Women speak 18% of the words (1,505), men 82% (6,887).

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

Two men

Exhibit F: behind the camera

3 of the 12 people in these jobs are women. Across the whole crew, 21% of the people whose gender is listed are women.

Directed by: Gavin O'Connor (man)
Written by: Brad Ingelsby (man)
Produced by: Gavin O'Connor (man), Gordon Gray (man), Jennifer Todd (woman), Ravi D. Mehta (man)
Shot by: Eduard Grau (man)
Edited by: David Rosenbloom (man)
Music by: Rob Simonsen (man)
Production design by: Keith P. Cunningham (man)
Costumes by: Cindy Evans (woman)
Cast by: Wendy O'Brien (woman)