Yet progress remains sluggish as no bisexual male characters were featured in any of the year's releases, and for the third year in a row transgender characters were absent on screen, an omission the report calls 'the most glaring way that mainstream media fails to be inclusive.' The racial diversity of LGBTQ film characters is also dismal, with GLAAD recording a 'concerning continuation of a downward trend' as the number of queer characters of color decreased for the third consecutive year. 'We've called out the use of transactional relationships when it comes to bi characters who engage in a relationship to get something they need, rather than genuine romantic or sexual interest so many times before, so it's refreshing to see these films steer clear of playing into that stereotype,' Townsend said.
Gains were not simply made in the number of LGBTQ-inclusive films, but in the storylines as studios eviscerated commonly used plot and character tropes, particularly when it came to bisexual characters, as in 'Bombshell' and 'Anna.' NBC OUT Hallmark says it is in negotiations to include LGBTQ storylines in holiday movies
