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Representation for Latine immigrants on TV has hit a new low, according to a report from Define American, conducted in partnership with USC’s Norman Lear Center.
The “Change the Narrative, Change the World” report assessed
201 immigrant characters across 80 episodes of 62 scripted series, all of which aired between July 2023 and June 2025. Latine people made up 23% of all immigrant characters, down drastically from the 50% found in 2020. Meanwhile, Latine immigrants make up 44% of all immigrants living in the U.S. “FBI” and “FBI: Most Wanted made up a large portion of Latine immigrant characters in the sample; without the franchise, the report notes, representation falls to just 17%.
Additionally, the report noted that out of all immigrant characters, one in four were portrayed as a criminal, drug addict or human trafficker, perpetuating negative stereotypes on-screen.
“No force in culture shapes how we see each other quite like Hollywood, which is exactly why representation must be a priority,” Define American founder Jose Antonio Vargas said in a statement about the report. “Our research is clear: the stories we see on screen have the power to change how we view people in real life. It’s time the industry moves beyond meeting a quota and embraces its responsibility to accurately reflect the complexity of the American people. When Hollywood tells these stories, we will be able to build a more welcoming America for all.”
The Netflix series “Mo,” which aired for two seasons and featured 13 immigrants and two children of immigrants (the most of any show studied), was hailed as a standard for immigrant and Middle Eastern representation. According to Define American’s research, 62% of viewers “reported increased understanding of the challenges immigrants face,” while 54% of viewers “said they were more likely to support refugees in their own communities after watching.”
“Deli Boys,” which airs on Hulu and follows two Pakistani-American brothers, was cited as a strong example of AAPI immigrant representation. Additionally, Black immigrant representation held steady at 17%, largely thanks to the CBS sitcom “Bob Hearts Abishola.” But that show wrapped in 2024 with its fifth and final season, so those numbers could fall, the report warns.
“While shows like ‘Mo,’ ‘Deli Boys,’ and ‘Bob Hearts Abishola’ have set high standards for nuanced storytelling, the industry cannot rely on a few programs to represent the whole immigrant community,” Define American’s director of media partnerships, Dulce Valencia, said. “We work with writers and producers to build the infrastructure for sustained and nuanced representation on screen, so that no single show has to carry the weight of the entire community.”
