Latinos stream more than anyone else but are rarely on screen

Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios

Latinos are more likely to subscribe to multiple streaming services than the average American, according to a recent report.

Yes, but: Latinos are rarely depicted on screen despite being avid TV consumers and outspending other racial and ethnic groups in movie ticket purchases.

Only 5% of lead actors in films and 2.9% in all new and returning television and streaming shows were Latino in 2020. On the rare occasion that Latino-led shows are green-lit, they're swiftly canceled, even if they have a large audience.
At the same time, many non-Hispanic white actors are cast in Latino roles.

By the numbers: 38% of Latino homes pay for cable or satellite TV and also subscribe to streaming services, compared to 29% of the overall U.S. population, according to a June report from firm Horowitz Research.

Another 38% subscribe only to streaming, a figure that keeps growing each year, the researchers found.
The group’s subscription rates are 9% higher, on average, than among total U.S. viewers for services like Netflix, Prime Video, Apple TV+, HBO Max and Disney+.

The big picture: Two recent cancellations illustrate how the television and film industry fails Latino-led productions, advocates say.

“Batgirl,” starring Afro Latina Leslie Grace, was shelved last week despite being complete — with a $90 million budget. The Hollywood Reporter writes the movie was a casualty of Warner Bros. Discovery's new corporate strategy.
In late July,after one season, HBO Max canceled “Gordita Chronicles,” about a Dominican family’s move to the U.S. in the 80s.

“Gordita Chronicles,” an executive told Deadline, “earned critical acclaim and a loyal following,” but HBO/Warner Bros. Discovery streaming would no longer be focused on “live-action kids and family programming.”

Zoe Saldaña, producer of “Gordita Chronicles” said the “Batgirl” cancellation was a “truly atrocious act from a studio.”