When Wonder Woman came out in 2017, female representation in super hero movies was a hot topic. What was once considered a niche phenomenon in the genre took centre stage and the prevailing current was one that was full of debate, admiration or criticism for Patty Jenkins' interpretation of America's first female super hero comic book character. The common chord however, was that female super heroes mattered and their depiction significantly influenced young women and girls who saw them as role models.Two years since the release of Wonder Woman, the genre has made leaps, particularly with Black Panther, which was praised for the manner in which it wrote its female characters - Shurri, Okoye and Nakia as autonomous individuals whose arcs were independent of the male co-stars. The success of the film prompted Marvel to commission Nnedi Okarafor to create a stand alone comic book series around Shuri, who is the smartest person in the MCU.But has the genre done in enough to bridge the glaring disparity between male and female superhero characters? A new study, Battle of the Super Sexes shows that a lot more needs to be done.The study breaks down the disparity in representation of female characters in highest grossing super hero films, analysing total screen time and number of named characters in comparison to male counterparts. It goes further to break down the gender disparity in the ratio of number of male to female producers and directors for each film.Battle of the Super Sexes An overview of the study.Even though Incredibles 2 gives the most screen time to female superheroes, with Elastigirl and Violet shown for 01:03:34, and male superheroes are onscreen for 01:40:43. Elastigirl still she gets 10 seconds less screen time than Mr Incredible.Avengers: Infinity War features the most female superheroes with five, compared to 17 male superheroes. The Dark Knight Rises is the only film listed that doesn't feature a female superhero.Aquaman had the most female producers work on the film with 8, followed by Avengers: Infinity War with 4.Black Panther features 16 named female and 10 male characters. The Dark Knight Rises has three named female and 15 male characters.Iron Man 3 devotes the least screen time to female superheroes with 18 minutes.Captain Marvel...The first female super hero film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Captain Marvel is showing great promise, grossing $130 million at the US Box office since its theatrical release on 8th March 2019. It also the first Marvel film to be directed by a woman (Anna Boden).Whether it will be cultural turning point like Wonder Woman and Black Panther, only time and critical review, will tell.What is evident however, is that 19  years into 21st century, it is time for female super hero characters to be the norm rather than a novelty.