Lena Dunham is not the voice of her generation, and that’s OK.
The actress and writer, best known for the 2010s comedy “Girls,” opened up about criticism of the HBO series in an interview with The Independent published on July 5.
“One of the profound issues around ‘Girls’ was that there was so little real estate for women in television that if you had a show called ‘Girls,’ which is such a monolithic name, it sounds like it’s describing all the girls in all the places,” Dunham told the British outlet.
“And so, if it’s not reflecting a multitude of experiences, I understand how that would be really disappointing to people.”
The coming-of-age dramedy revolved around four twentysomething women in New York — Hannah (Dunham), Marnie (Allison Williams), Jessa (Jemima Kirke), and Shoshanna (Zosia Mamet) — as they navigated work, dating, and the harsh realization that they maybe shouldn’t be friends after all.
The show, which drew controversy for its frank portrayal of womanhood and predominantly white cast, ran for six seasons and picked up a pair of Primetime Emmy Awards. While recent reappraisals of “Girls” have recognized the series as a satire of millennial narcissism, Dunham said she “liked the conversation around ‘Girls,'” including criticism of its racial diversity.
Dunham has applied the feedback to her current work. The television mogul serves as writer, director, and executive producer on the Netflix series “Too Much,” a romantic comedy starring Will Sharpe, Megan Stalter, and Aylin Scott.
“The thing I have really come to believe is that one of the most important things is not just diversity in front of the camera, but it’s diversity behind the camera,” Dunham said. “As a producer, one of my goals is to bring a lot of different voices into a position where they can tell their story.”
In a June 2024 interview with USA TODAY, Dunham reflected on the often-toxic discourse surrounding “Girls” and what it taught her as a creative.
“The biggest lesson that I learned is that once your work is in the world, people are going to have the conversation they’re going to have,” Dunham said. “I try to hear when people have something valid to say, but also to disconnect from it enough that I can continue to make my work.”
Contributing: Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY
