The GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Film – Wide Release is an annual award that honors films that received a

wide release In the American motion picture industry, a wide release (short for nationwide release) is a film playing at the same time at cinemas in most markets across the country. This is in contrast to the formerly common practice of a roadshow theatrical r ...

for excellence in the depiction of

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(

lesbian A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...

, gay,

bisexual Bisexuality is a romantic or sexual attraction or behavior toward both males and females, or to more than one gender. It may also be defined to include romantic or sexual attraction to people regardless of their sex or gender identity, whic ...

, and

transgender A transgender (often abbreviated as trans) person is someone whose gender identity or gender expression does not correspond with their sex assigned at birth. Many transgender people experience dysphoria, which they seek to alleviate through ...

) characters and themes. It is one of several categories of the annual

GLAAD Media Award The GLAAD Media Award is an accolade bestowed by GLAAD to recognize and honor various branches of the media for their outstanding representations of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community and the issues that affect their liv ...

s, which are presented by

GLAAD GLAAD (), an acronym of Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation, is an American non-governmental media monitoring organization originally founded as a protest against defamatory coverage of gay and lesbian demographics and their portrayal ...

—an American

non-governmental A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from government. They are typically nonprofit entities, and many of them are active in ...

media monitoring organization founded in 1985, formerly called the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation—at ceremonies in New York City, Los Angeles, and San Francisco between March and June. The award was given for the first time during the 2nd GLAAD Media Awards in 1991 to '' Longtime Companion'', distributed by

The Samuel Goldwyn Company The Samuel Goldwyn Company was an American independent film company founded by Samuel Goldwyn Jr., the son of the famous Hollywood mogul, Samuel Goldwyn, in 1978. Background The company originally distributed and acquired art-house films fro ...

, and ''

The Handmaid's Tale ''The Handmaid's Tale'' is a futuristic dystopian novel by Canadian author Margaret Atwood and published in 1985. It is set in a near-future New England in a patriarchal, totalitarian theonomic state known as the Republic of Gilead, which ...

'', distributed by Cinecom. There were only two more instances in which two films shared the award: '' Frankie and Johnny'' and ''

Fried Green Tomatoes ''Fried Green Tomatoes'' is a 1991 American comedy-drama film directed by Jon Avnet and based on Fannie Flagg's 1987 novel ''Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe''. Written by Flagg and Carol Sobieski, and starring Kathy Bates, Jes ...

'' in 1992, and '' The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert'' and ''

Go Fish Go Fish or Fish is a card game usually played by two to five players,
although it can be played wi ...

'' in 1995. While no film was recognized in 1993, the award has been present at every ceremony since 1994. At the 7th GLAAD Media Awards, a clear distinction was made between films that received a wide release versus a

limited release __FORCETOC__ Limited theatrical release is a film distribution strategy of releasing a new film in a few theaters across a country, typically art house theaters in major metropolitan markets. Since 1994, a limited theatrical release in the Unit ...

, with this award being titled as Outstanding Studio Film, before being retitled to its current name the following year. For a film to be eligible, it must be released by a recognized film distribution company and play for paid admission in

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world ...

for seven consecutive days. Wide release is defined by a combination of criteria such as the numbers of screens, budget, and visibility. The award may be accepted by any of the film's producers, directors, writers, or actors. Wide-released films selected by GLAAD are evaluated based on four criteria: "Fair, Accurate, and Inclusive Representations" of the LGBT community, "Boldness and Originality" of the project, significant "Impact" on mainstream culture, and "Overall Quality" of the project. GLAAD monitors mainstream media to identify which films will be nominated, while also issuing a Call for Entries that encourages media outlets to submit films for consideration. By contrast, in order for films created by and for LGBT audiences to be considered for nomination, they must be submitted after the Call for Entries. Winners are determined by a plurality vote by GLAAD staff and its board, Shareholders Circle members, volunteers and affiliated individuals. Since its inception, the award has been given to 34 films. At the 33rd GLAAD Media Awards in 2022, the award was given to '' Eternals'', distributed by

Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures, formerly known as Buena Vista Pictures Distribution, Inc. until 2007, is an American film distribution studio within the Disney Media and Entertainment Distribution division of The Walt Disney Company. It h ...

Winners and nominees

Initially, GLAAD only announced the winners during press releases, with the awards being given during the ceremonies. For the 7th GLAAD Media Awards in 1996, GLAAD made the list of nominees in this category publicly available, announcing the winner at a latter date. Since then, the nominees in all categories have been made public.

1990s

2000s

2010s

2020s

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:GLAAD Media Award for Outstanding Film - Wide Release Film Wide Awards for best film LGBT film awards