Why are there so few films where the lead character is single and actually fine about it?

I am having one of those weeks with this newsletter where I am all set to write something and then suddenly something catches my eye and takes me in a different direction. Yesterday, it was a tweet by a former colleague (who reads this newsletter so hello Becky!) about an article about why cinema is so reluctant to let leading ladies be childfree. Yes, I thought, but it’s not just about them being childfree! How many films can you think of where the leading lady is single and not constantly trying not to be? There are even fewer films where the lead ends up staying single.

This is a topic Mel Johnson (of The Stork and I) discussed on a recent podcast episode. We were discussing the impact of endless books, films and TV shows showing only one narrative – the ‘yes the fairytale does exist and we will all live happily ever after’ one. From a very young age, we watch cartoons and Disney films and are read children’s books, most of which perpetuate this one narrow narrative – the woman is…