Gen Z is tired of seeing onscreen sex in movies and TV shows, according to a new report from UCLA’s Center for Scholars & Storytellers. The annual Teens & Screens report surveyed 1,500 Americans between the ages of 10 and 24 to find that romance ranked third to last in topics of watching interest. In fact, 48.4 percent of respondents said that there is “too much sex and sexual content in TV and movies,” and 60.9 percent said they would rather see romantic relationships shown as “more about the friendship between the couple than sex.” The 14-24 demographic specifically gravitated towards tales about friendships, with 59.7 percent requesting “more content where the central relationships are friendships” and 54.1 percent wanting “portrayals of characters who aren’t interested in romantic relationships at that point in time.” Youth people don’t want to see toxic friendships either, requesting “same gender friendships” with “healthy conflict resolution.” They are also uninterested in unhealthy romantic relationships, ranking tropes like love triangles and toxic relationships amongst the most uninteresting and tiresome avenues to explore. Hollywood has long used young viewership preferences to help guide projects, and this study reports that teens are now searching for relatable content about friendship instead of love stories.
Read it at Variety
