16 Alarming Examples Of The Gender Pay Gap In Hollywood

It already took Gillian Anderson three seasons to bump up her salary to what David Duchovny was getting paid for the original X-Files. Due to that, she initially ended up denying the first offer of the new X-Files. At the moment, she is getting the same as her male co-star, but then again, it was only thanks to persistent negotiations.

As the much-talked-about Hollywood couple were acquainted in the movie Mr. and Mrs. Smith, it also drew attention to the pay inequality. Pitt, playing the husband of Jolie in the film, made $20 million, whereas Jolie walked away with half of that.

At some point, being the highest-paid television actress, Ellen Pompeo aka Meredith Grey tried to request to get slightly more than Patrick Dempsey and got the cold shoulder. Although she was the star of the show, when it came to salary, it turned out completely different.

Another female actress got her eyes opened through the Sony hack scandal. Turned out that Charlize Theron was making $10 million less than her male counterpart, Chris Hemsworth, in The Huntsman: Winter’s War. This made her demand for a pay raise for the prequel Snow White and The Huntsman.

Natalie Portman, who starred along Ashton Kutcher in No Strings Attached, revealed that he was paid three times more for the movie. Like Jennifer Lawrence after the controversy over the gender pay inequality in American Hustle, she regretted not speaking out enough.

The famous Sony hack revealed that the pay among the male and female stars of American Hustle was not the fairest. After finding that out, Jennifer Lawrence, who was paid less than Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale, and Jeremy Renner, expressed her regret over not negotiating it more fiercely.

Even being one of the most legendary Hollywood actresses, Meryl Streep, famously stating that “Women’s issues are men’s issues,” spoke about sexism in the film industry and revealed that she has been underpaid throughout her career.

Ironically, in the movie called All the Money in the World, Michelle Williams received less than 1% of what her co-star Mark Wahlberg pocketed. In response to a controversy that sparked a year later after the release of the film, Wahlberg donated his $1.5 million ‘over-payment’ to Time’s Up legal defence fund, all under Williams’s name. Williams, on her behalf, released a statement thanking all the men and women involved in speaking out about sexual harassment in Hollywood’s film industry.

Something’s Gotta Give definitely gave Jack Nicholson a full fat paycheck rather than adequately rewarding his female co-star Diane Keaton. Allegedly, Nicholson shared the pay back with his co-star to make it even.

Robin Wright, winner of a Golden Globe, had to negotiate the salary for her House of Cards role of Claire Underwood. Kevin Spacey, playing the husband in this popular Netflix series, was raking in $500,000 per episode. Wright stated that she would discuss the injustice publicly unless her conditions changed. And they did.

Hilary Swank pointed out that no matter how much Hollywood loves its women, it still loves men more when it comes to paying for the job. The actress with two Academy Awards in her lap couldn’t highlight enough that it’s not even a matter of men getting paid double—it’s a matter of getting paid 10 times more than women.

Sienna Miller walked away from a two-person play and made a point as the male co-actor was offered twice as much as her. “We are going to have to make sacrifices to make change. I want to turn up and feel dignified.”

“I’ve been in films where I’ve found out my male co-star got paid double what I got paid, and it’s just a reality of the time that we live in,” admitted Rooney Mara. The actress expressed her disappointment in the gender pay gap as she has been underpaid a few times. The Girl With A Dragon Tattoo actress also stated that she is grateful for getting paid for what she does, but finding out about her male co-stars receiving larger sums is still frustrating. 

Although Amy Adams realized she was making much less than Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale, and Jeremy Renner in American Hustle, she still decided to stick with the role. She explained that not all negotiations are done by the actresses and actors themselves, but often by their agents. According to her, it came down to the decision of whether it was worth it to take on the role or not.

E! News reporter Catt Sadler ended up leaving her position due to the fact that her co-host Jason Kennedy was earning twice as much. She attempted to get a raise, but unsuccessfully, and revealed the disappointment on her blog: “How can I remain silent when my rights under the law have been violated?”

Jessica Chastain earned $1.75 million for The Martian when her co-star Matt Damon reportedly made anything from $15 to $25 million. “I made less than a quarter of that in reality, so there is a huge wage gap in the industry," Chastain said.

• You might also like: 28 Side-By-Side Pics Of Characters People “Refuse To Believe” Are Played By The Same Actors