Remember the first time we saw The Matrix? That insane intro scene with Carrie-Ann Moss’ Trinity, battling the bad guys in a riveting action sequence? Right after that, Trinity miraculously vanishes, leaving the bad guys, as well as us, utterly dumbfounded. Who is this mysterious woman? How did she single-handedly fight off the bad guys? How does she have these powers? These questions filled our minds, luring us to sit through the movie to find out more about this intriguing character.
Trinity is introduced as a compelling & competent character at the start of the movie. However, as the movie progresses, the main lead, Neo’s (played by Keanu Reeves) personality overshadows and garners more screen-time than Trinity's. In the end, it's Neo who saves Trinity. It's Neo who saves humanity multiple times. He is the hero with all the glory & fame. From a mysterious & skilled character, Trinity gets reduced to Neo's love interest, her character no longer adding any value to the story. This has led to the coinage of the term ‘Trinity Syndrome’.
“Trinity Syndrome: the hugely capable woman who never once becomes as independent, significant, or exciting as she is in her introductory scene”.
In the name of representation and gender diversity, many films have fallen victim to this trope. From Princess Leia (Star Wars) to Annabeth Chase (Percy Jackson), these women have sported the skilled and exciting sidekick character to a semi-competent male hero. Why can't the girls be the hero instead?
This observation brings out an alarming issue to the surface. Under the pretense of tackling the issue of lack of representation in media, moviemakers have started casting marginalized individuals as a main lead’s love interest, best friend, or next-door neighbour, and rarely as the main lead itself.
From a lack of representation, the problem has evolved to misrepresentation in mainstream media.
For instance, Harry and Ron wouldn't have made it out alive without Hermione. Her knowledge and skills far outpowered Harry's, something that's pointed out countless times in the movies and books. However, in the end, Harry is the hero of the day. Hermione is reduced to his nerdy sidekick whose purpose is to help Harry uphold his legacy. Hyper competent and smart women in pop culture can do everything except be the hero and save the day.
Non-white queer individuals are often cast as side characters - their sole purpose is to further the storyline of the male lead.
We are aware that casting women in super smart and competent roles is an attempt for moviemakers to empower women. It certainly is remarkable to note that moviemakers have realized the importance of telling more diverse stories and steering away from stories centered around cis-gendered, white, male characters - but when individuals from diverse backgrounds are cast, the hero roles are reserved for white men. Anyone different is reserved for supporting and disposable roles.
This trope perpetuates a very toxic message: However skilled and knowledgeable a woman is, she will never be able to compete with her barely skilled male lead counterpart.
I definitely saw the problem with all the examples but i had no idea there was a term for this phenomenon. This is so interesting and informative!