Is Europe the Last Bastion of DEI?

On April 18, opponents of Hollywood’s Diversity Equity and Inclusion (DEI) programs appeared to score a victory when CBS Studios settled a lawsuit against parent company Paramount of carrying illegal diversity quotas that discriminate against straight white men. America First Legal Foundation, a conservative group founded by White House deputy chief of staff Stephen Miller, had filed the suit on behalf of a white script coordinator for CBS series SEAL Team, who accused Paramount of hiring and promoting less-qualified female writers, or those from minority groups. 

The settlement comes amid a broader retreat from DEI within the U.S. entertainment industry as companies find themselves in the crosshairs of the Trump government over efforts to increase inclusion and representation. On the day of his inauguration, the President signed a sweeping executive order eliminating DEI programs within government agencies. He has since directed the 

U.S. Department of Justice to target so-called “illegal DEI” mandates across the private sector. Along with Paramount, Disney, Amazon Studios, and Warner Bros. Discovery have all dialed back or eliminated DEI programs.

The anti-DEI crackdown is also being felt internationally, as local division of the studios and streamers fall in line with the new mandates from Hollywood HQ. “It’s been a complete U-Turn,” says one European showrunner, who has produced local-language drama series for Netflix and Disney+. “No one at these companies is interested in diversity anymore. They don’t want to hear it.” 

The European divisions of the U.S. studios and streamers contacted by The Hollywood Reporter for this story declined to comment. 

The Trump administration has tried to officially extend its DEI ban to Europe, sending letters to companies and embassies across the European Union demanding they eliminate their own diversity, equity and inclusion programs if they want to do business with the United States. The letters, which were published by several European news agencies, asked firms to certify that they “do not practice programs to promote diversity, equity and inclusion,” initiatives, which “infringe on applicable federal anti-discrimination laws” in the United States. The effort, for now, is to target companies that provide services to the U.S. government, such as aviation and defense groups, not entertainment firms. 

But in the face of these new White House demands, Europe is fighting back, with networks, producers and companies holding fast or doubling down on their DEI initiatives. 

“Representation and inclusion is based in everything we do,” says Lindsay Salt, Director of Drama at British national public broadcaster the BBC. “It probably wouldn’t be appropriate for me to comment on the U.S., but basically [DEI] is part of our charter and public purpose, which is to reflect and represent the whole of the U.K.” 

Salt points to recent BBC series — shows like Mr. Loverman, a story of gay men in Britain’s African-Caribbean community, What it Feels Like for a Girl, a trans coming-out tale set in a working class community in the East Midlands, and Reunion, a crime drama centered on a deaf protagonist — as evidence of the network’s commitment to diverse content. 

Jasmin Maeda, head of international fiction at German public broadcaster ZDF, echoes that sentiment. “Our strategic goal is to continuously offer a diverse range of programs for all audiences in Germany [by] displaying the multifaceted realities of life through new and under-represented locations and milieus.”

“Clients want their production partners to have a DEI scheme in place,” says Harry Moore, head of production and development for content at Milk Machine, a division of U.K. production outfit Mad Cow Films. “[They want] equal representation in crews and want to know that like their values are shared by their production partner as well as them.”

Since the DEI crackdown stateside, Europe has become something of a haven for diverse talent. 

Chetal Patel, a London-based immigration lawyer, urges those affected by the DEI crackdown in the States to capitalize on Britain’s Global Talent Visa, which allows individuals with a “substantial track record” and an endorsement from a British-based member of the industry, to work in the U.K.. The British industry wants to tap into a diverse pool of talent “representing the current multicultural makeup of the U.K.,” she says, meaning being from an under-represented group — whether ethnically, social-economic or due to one’s sexual identity — can be an advantage in securing a work permit. 

Europe’s DEI roots, however, are shallow. In France any discrimination on the basis of origin, religion or ethnicity is banned (as is the collection of race-based data, part of the state’s “color-blind” approach to secularism), so DEI programs can only focus on gender and socioeconomic representation. In Germany, efforts to embed DEI programs in legislation have been largely unsuccessful. In December, before passing a new film funding law, the German parliament removed a clause that would have made certain DEI requirements, including meeting specific gender equality and inclusion criteria, mandatory for all productions receiving government support. 

“A lot of people, especially the bosses, haven’t haven’t accepted the idea that you need a diverse cast, a diverse pool of talent to represent everyone in society,” notes one German producer. “DEI was an American idea, essentially, that got transplanted here,” agues a French director. “It can still be torn out.” 

While the U.K. does have DEI legislation on the books, many British producers are dependent on contracts with U.S. companies. 

“You’d hope [anti-DEI] government legislation from the U.S. wouldn’t affect the U.K.,” notes Moore. “But then again, it wouldn’t be the first time that U.S. politics has affected the U.K..”

But even as the U.S. turns away from policies designed to foster inclusion, European creatives and policymakers are digging in, determined to defend what they see as core cultural values—not imported ideologies. In face of pressure from Washington, their message is blunt.

“We have a culture of nondiscrimination in Europe and we must continue that,” Jan Jambon, the Deputy Prime Minister of Belgium, said in a March 30 TV interview following the publication of the U.S. government letters. Taking a swipe at Trump, he added: “We have no lessons to learn from the boss of America.”

A version of this story first appeared in the May 7 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. To receive the magazine, click here to subscribe.