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can often be totally misrepresented in mainstream films and TV shows as this sensual, erotic experience because, shocker, most of those scenes are directed with a straight, male audience in mind. But in reality, we all know the way women masturbate can vary from frantic ‘I gotta rub one out asap’ to lazy ‘I fell asleep with my hands down my pants’ solo sex. I’ve a fair bit before, but here are 13 of the best female masturbation scenes in movies that are not all about turning dudes on.
Sex educator says that much of mainstream hardcore porn shows female masturbation in a very performative way and perpetuates a trope of “a woman lying down with her legs as far wide as humanly possible.”
There are so many reasons to love and hate Marnie, but in this particular scene, when she rushes to the bathroom during a party to rub one out, it’s all love. While it wasn’t totally clear what she was thinking about in that moment when she pushed down her pantyhose to finger herself, it’s safe to assume it probably wasn’t her current boyfriend who shaved his head earlier in the episode. Airing in 2012, this was one of the first mainstream shows to depict female masturbation in a way that wasn’t totally driven by the male gaze.
Though masturbation on ‘the main’ TV channels in the UK, like the BBC and ITV, still feels quite novel, it’s something that’s been happening outside the mainstream – and over the Atlantic – for years, with all the women I spoke to citing US examples such as Comedy Central’s Broad City – which has just ended – and The CW’s Crazy Ex-Girlfriend as sex-positive shows, because they’ve been written by women. (The first episode of Broad City began with Abbi scheduling her masturbation session for the week; in another episode, Ilana’s pre-masturbation ritual is shown by eating oysters, loading up some porn and placing a mirror adjacent to herself.) “Broad City is a show that’s focused a lot on female sexuality,” adds Alice, “but, on a terrestrial channel, you just don’t see it.”
Sex-educator, advice columnist, and founder of, Cynthia Loyst links the increase in women feeling comfortable to use toys and be open about masturbating to pop culture. “Over the past few decades, there’s been a huge surge in representation of female masturbation in mainstream media — from shows like Sex and the City, Girls, and You, to online magazines like Goop featuring sex toys and YouTubers giving full reviews [of vibrators]. Female self-pleasure has finally come out of the closet.”
