The LEGO Movie 2 to Contain More Female Characters

[Hapori Tohu]

For a long time, people of all genders have been rightfully complaining about representation of women in media - too often female protagonists are the exception, not the norm. However, there are hints that may be changing and LEGO seems to have the vision to be up front to support this development, as Phil Lord and Chris Miller, writers of both LEGO movies, have announced a greater number of female protagonists in TLM 2. I have faith that not only will there be more female characters but that they will also be properly portrayed, as too often female characters are written as one-dimensional caricatures of supposedly female traits - though it must be noted that I feel TLM already did a very good job at female character portrayal. It will be great to see TLM 2 inspire people of all genders and ages just like the first movie did.

 

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[Sybre]

I'm interested in seeing the final results of these female characters and what they'll do in the movie. I also wonder what their personalities and appearances will turn out like...

Edited November 13, 2014 by Emotionless

[TheSkeletonMan939]

Didn't you already report this a while ago?

[believe victims]

Didn't you already report this a while ago?

 

Well, that was more of, "i'd like this to happen" while this is "it's happening"

[Gatanui]

Didn't you already report this a while ago?

Well, that was the director speaking, this time it's the writers.

[Cambion]

this is great news. it's not really like anyone needed more reasons to go see TLM 2, but hey, we've got em, and they're good ones.

 

oh, and:

people of all genders

couldn't help but notice this nice little touch. good on ya

Edited November 13, 2014 by Arc

[Lyichir]

(Copied from a comment on Facebook)

I hope they put some good focus on the female characters from the previous movie, as well... Unikitty and Wyldstyle had some nice tension that mostly went unexplored, and I'm not good enough at writing to do so in fanfiction!

Adding a Minidoll to the main cast could also be neat. I feel like the first movie sort of avoided atypical fig designs (probably to help ease general audiences into the world without prompting the typical "is that even Lego" response). But now that the first movie has proven its appeal to audiences it can delve into the less "ordinary" parts of Lego's oeuvre, like Friends or Bionicle.

[TheSkeletonMan939]

 

Didn't you already report this a while ago?

Well, that was the director speaking, this time it's the writers.

 

 

Potato pahtahto.

 

I worry that they'll be so concerned to make everyone happy by cramming in female characters that they fail to develop them adequately... but I trust Lord and Miller.

[Aanchir]

I worry that they'll be so concerned to make everyone happy by cramming in female characters that they fail to develop them adequately... but I trust Lord and Miller.

Yeah, I think most professional screenwriters know enough about writing to know that cramming in underdeveloped characters won't actually be enough to make everyone happy. There's no reason they'd even bother adding more female characters if they weren't going to make them actually matter to the movie as much as any other character. The LEGO Movie was not lacking in diversity among background characters. Edited November 13, 2014 by Aanchir

[user-402520536]

*cough* cough* Gali *cough*

[believe victims]

I worry that they'll be so concerned to make everyone happy by cramming in female characters that they fail to develop them adequately... but I trust Lord and Miller.

 

 

This concern often comes up when it comes to a desire to have more female characters and I can't say I've ever understood it. They've been cramming large amounts of male characters into movies for years, and somehow always managed to make it work. I should think if some of those characters are female instead, it wouldn't be any worse.

[Catra]

I worry that they'll be so concerned to make everyone happy by cramming in female characters that they fail to develop them adequately

 

obviously the best course of action is to replace the male characters with female or nonbinary characters.

 

oh, and:

people of all genders

couldn't help but notice this nice little touch. good on ya

 

[Gatanui]

Don't wanna exclude anybody.

[TheSkeletonMan939]

 

I worry that they'll be so concerned to make everyone happy by cramming in female characters that they fail to develop them adequately... but I trust Lord and Miller.

 

 

This concern often comes up when it comes to a desire to have more female characters and I can't say I've ever understood it. They've been cramming large amounts of male characters into movies for years, and somehow always managed to make it work. I should think if some of those characters are female instead, it wouldn't be any worse.

 

 

Fair enough. I worded that poorly. What I mean is that I fear that, in their quest to include more females in their story, they'll overcrowd the movie to the point where everyone is essentially the same, and they rely on the first movie for any characterization (at least for Wildtyle, Batman, Unikitty, Emmet, etc.). That's why I think it was crazy for Tolkien to include a dozen dwarves in The Hobbit. Aside from Thorin they all felt the same to me. While having a diverse background cast is important - it makes the story feel more real, in a way - I think having too many characters tagging along on the main "quest" can cause numerous problems.

 

*cough* cough* Gali *cough*

 

Woah, you're right. Bionicles may have a small chance to make it into this movie. How cool would it be to see a Bionicle on the big screen?

[Lyichir]

 

*cough* cough* Gali *cough*

 

Woah, you're right. Bionicles may have a small chance to make it into this movie. How cool would it be to see a Bionicle on the big screen?

 

I would wager it's more than a "small chance". The way I see it, the first movie avoided less ordinary themes or characters for good reason—they needed to convince mass audiences that a movie made out of Lego could work, and to do so involved omitting or downplaying themes with unusual fig designs or vastly different scales, so as to appease audiences who have a narrow perspective of what "Lego" is. But now that the first movie has laid the groundwork and established the world, a sequel can include things like Bionicle or Friends—things that expand the boundaries of the world the first film already laid out, with enough breathing room to give them a fair shake.

 

I think Bionicle, Technic, Chima and Friends will especially have a shot at appearing because the production schedule of the sequel ensures that the human characters (who I'm sure will appear, given how well received the first movie's meta-narrative was) will have aged several years in the interim. That means Finn, who was working with basic Lego at the movie's start, might be entering that age range when Technic and constraction themes start to appeal to him more (most BZPers should know what that's like), and Finn's sister, who was in the Duplo age range at the start of the movie, might be just getting into regular Lego and Friends in particular. Like with Toy Story, aging characters open up new story possibilities—while this next movie might be too soon for it, I'd love to see a Lego Movie sequel built around the idea of Finn's "dark ages" and what happens to the Lego world he's created if he starts to lose interest in building.

[Wazdakka]

I doubt that we'd see any Bionicles. I mean, they could have promoted plenty of other lines in the original movie, but chose not too. I digress and exit stage left. 

[Banana Gunz]

I only want one other character in TLM2: junkbot. It would make the movie PERFECT.

 

But more female characters is always excellent.

[Lyichir]

I doubt that we'd see any Bionicles. I mean, they could have promoted plenty of other lines in the original movie, but chose not too. I digress and exit stage left.

As I said before, they probably chose not to include themes like Bionicle in the first movie so as to avoid alienating mass audiences with less traditional Lego parts, figures, and characters—after all, most reviewers (and other non-fans) were skeptical of the idea of a Lego movie in the first place, and they had to win them over and make them appreciate the concept itself. But they're not making a sequel just to retread the same ground as the first movie. Now that people know what to expect from a Lego Movie, this is their chance to bring in some of the "weirder" stuff they passed up on in the first movie, and I have no doubt that they'll take advantage of that.

 

We might not see a Bionicle figure as a main character, seeing as most Bionicle figures would dwarf even Metalbeard (good luck getting through doors, Tahu), and the few that wouldn't are largely ones like Matoran with extremely limited posability. But in the background, or as a Master Builder or other side character? It's entirely possible, especially since the first movie culminated in the breaking down of the artificial borders between themes.

[Pomegranate]

Lovely to see this crop up again from the folks working on it, it's sure to be a great film.

[KopakaFan116]

That's great! That probably means more female minifigures in sets! And I fixed something that didn't make sense, BOTH genders, as there are only two.

I'm REALLY EXCITED for more female minifigures in sets (hopefully).

[TuragaTahu]

-retracted

Edited July 9, 2021 by TuragaTahu

[fishers64]

*cough* cough* Gali *cough*

Oh, come on. Now you've got me thinking that Eris, Nya, and Gali epic team-up would be the most amazing thing since Bionicle. 

 

Throw Wildstyle and Unikitty in there and it's a wrap. Villain defeated, movie over. 

Edited November 14, 2014 by fishers64

[believe victims]

I wonder why it seems that LEGO is getting political... 

 

I don't see how this is political at all. They're just saying the gender ratio in the next movie will more accurately represent the actual gender ratio of the real world.

[fishers64]

(good luck getting through doors, Tahu)

I think that actually would increase the odds of Tahu appearing in the movie. 

Edited November 14, 2014 by fishers64

[Lyichir]

 

I wonder why it seems that LEGO is getting political...

 

I don't see how this is political at all. They're just saying the gender ratio in the next movie will more accurately represent the actual gender ratio of the real world.

 

Plus, this isn't Lego. This is Phil Lord and Chris Miller, the directors of the movie. And gender representation is maybe as big an issue in Hollywood as it is in the toy industry, and one that's good for people like them to address.

[Gatanui]

That's great! That probably means more female minifigures in sets! And I fixed something that didn't make sense, BOTH genders, as there are only two.

 

I'm REALLY EXCITED for more female minifigures in sets (hopefully).

It's not that simple. There is a reason I chose to write it the way I did and not another. Edited November 14, 2014 by Gatanui

[Click]

I really hope that Bionicle doesn't make it into the movie, and similarly lines like Ninjago and Chima are kept to a minimum. It would lead to the convolution of one of the story lines as the characters try to explain why they're in that movie and still act their part from their story lines.

 

It's cool that Lego's actually fighting typical gender ratios. Now if they can get that into more of their themes, everyone will be happy.

[Cambion]

I really hope that Bionicle doesn't make it into the movie, and similarly lines like Ninjago and Chima are kept to a minimum. It would lead to the convolution of one of the story lines as the characters try to explain why they're in that movie and still act their part from their story lines.

i don't see why there would be a problem. they worked Batman in just fine.

[Click]

 

I really hope that Bionicle doesn't make it into the movie, and similarly lines like Ninjago and Chima are kept to a minimum. It would lead to the convolution of one of the story lines as the characters try to explain why they're in that movie and still act their part from their story lines.

i don't see why there would be a problem. they worked Batman in just fine.

 

Well, everyone knows Batman, at least to the extent required for this movie. The Ninjas would have to explain why they're spinning around, and Laval would have to explain what the magic blue stuff he has is. If it's just kept to the brief appearance of the Green Ninja, it worked great and was a nice homage, but I can't see them being main characters, especially with both already having their own shows.

Edited November 14, 2014 by Click

[Cambion]

 

 

I really hope that Bionicle doesn't make it into the movie, and similarly lines like Ninjago and Chima are kept to a minimum. It would lead to the convolution of one of the story lines as the characters try to explain why they're in that movie and still act their part from their story lines.

i don't see why there would be a problem. they worked Batman in just fine.

 

Well, everyone knows Batman, at least to the extent required for this movie. The Ninjas would have to explain why they're spinning around, and Laval would have to explain what the magic blue stuff he has is. If it's just kept to the brief appearance of the Green Ninja, it worked great and was a nice homage, but I can't see them being main characters, especially with both already having their own shows.

 

ehh...i don't think there'd be too much discussion of the characters' storylines. i don't think there's really any need for explanations for those things (at least not for the ninjas), and with the Ninjago and Chima characters being nearly all male anyway, i doubt many of them (or many Bionicle characters for that matter) would make it into main roles...if this news article is any indication.

[Toa Smoke Monster]

I think that it is great that Chris and Phil are doing this for the Lego Movie 2. I really like it when movies flesh out all their characters, regardless of gender, and don't make them one dimentional. 

[Makaru]

We are all making the assumption that if Gali or any other story-driven character makes a cameo or appearance in the film, it will be THAT exact character.

 

Lego's already showed us with Batman that the characters in the Lego Movie Universe are unique to their CANON counterparts in their respective themes. So while it may or may not happen that we get a Gali character in the Lego Movie, it's unlikely that it will be 2015 Master Gali and even less likely to be 2001 Toa Gali.

 

It will be Lego Movie Superstar Gali, or whatever. One that gets booed out of comedy clubs for bad jokes.

Edited November 14, 2014 by Makaru

[Ballom Nom Nom]

It's always good to hear that a film will have more female protagonists! It looks like The Lego Movie 2 may be shaping up to be even better than the first.

 

Oh, by the way, the link in the news article appears to be broken. It links to http://www.bzpower.com/board/topic/15723-the-lego-movie-2-to-contain-more-female-characters/,%20and%20too%20often%20female%20characters%20are%20portrayed%20as%20caricatures%20of%20supposedly%20female%20traits instead of any site with news about TLM 2.

 

~B~

Edited November 14, 2014 by Ballom

[KopakaFan116]

 

That's great! That probably means more female minifigures in sets! And I fixed something that didn't make sense, BOTH genders, as there are only two.

 

I'm REALLY EXCITED for more female minifigures in sets (hopefully).

It's not that simple. There is a reason I chose to write it the way I did and not another.

 

Oh. How many genders are there? By the way, I really like your profile photo.

[Makaru]

Oh. How many genders are there?

There are also non-binary genders.

Edited November 14, 2014 by Makaru

[Banana Gunz]

I'd be totally happy to see Bionicle have a quick cameo like it did in the last movie, but I wouldn't want anything Bionicle to have a real significant part in the plot/setting.

[EmperorWhenua]

Oh. How many genders are there?

There are as many genders as people care to identify as. It's not a binary, not barely even a spectrum, because it's up to everyone to decide what they identify as—or not to. Gender is a social construct, meaning that people invented the notion of gender, and exists solely to label and segregate people. It's also been a way to impose social roles and fashion, but there are many people to refuse to accept those limits. 

 

And there you have it. I'd rather not clutter the topic with this digression further, but I'm sure Makaru, Starlord and I would be enthralled to discuss it if you PM'ed us with more questions.  

[KopakaFan116]

Well, you can't change who you were born as. Everybody is born as one gender or the other. And gender was not "invented" by people, rather created for a purpose by an all-powerful being.

 

 

GO, GO, BATTLE FOR THE GOLDEN MASK CONTEST! GET IN YOUR ENTRIES BEFORE ITS TOO LATE!

 

http://www.eurobricks.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=101547

[Constructelf]

*coughcough*

 

You do know that there's a difference between biological sex and mental gender, right?

 

Anyways, I'm "meh" about the Lego Movie (2) in general. Just my taste in film, I guess.

Edited November 14, 2014 by namcurtsnoC

[KopakaFan116]

Yeah, I've heard of it. It still doesn't change what your PHYSICAL gender is, but rather your MINDSET.

Edited November 14, 2014 by KopakaFan116