Being a Hollywood actor or actress often means folding impressive amounts of money, but when male stars are constantly cashing in more, it can really disrupt the workflow and alert their female colleagues. The film industry is just another field in which women fall under the gender pay gap, and a few actresses have stood up in the past pointing out the injustice when it comes to receiving equal pay. Actresses and their supporters have become so outraged that many of them have decided to fight back and make a point. Displeased with the fact that women are working as hard as men for significantly lesser pay while having even more responsibilities on their plate outside of usual workspaces, ladies are slowly but surely starting to raise their voices and try to get heard.
The stories below illustrate how sometimes, it’s just a man’s world, and that the recent International Women’s Day could be more of manifestation rather than a celebration as it is most likely to still be a tough journey to equality and fairness. Let us know your thoughts and hopes in the comments.
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Gillian Anderson Got Offered Only Half Of David Duchovny’s Pay For The New X-Files
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.
Angelina Jolie Made Half What Brad Pitt Did For Mr. And Mrs. Smith
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.
Ellen Pompeo In Grey’s Anatomy Was Denied Higher Pay Than Patrick Dempsey
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.
Charlize Theron Made $10 Million Less Than Chris Hemsworth In The Huntsman
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.
Charlize Theron is thousand times a better thespian than this Chris guy !
Natalie Portman Got Paid Three Times Less Than Ashton Kutcher
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.
Jennifer Lawrence And Amy Adams Received 7% Of The Profits From American Hustle When Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale, And Jeremy Renner Got 9%
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.
Meryl Streep Has Earned Less Than Male Actors Throughout Her Career
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.
Michelle Williams Received Less Than 1% Compared To What Mark Wahlberg Did In All The Money In The World
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.
Kathy Griffin Had The Second-Lowest Salary In The Cast Of Suddenly Susan
Although Kathy Griffin started as an unknown actress, during her third season in Suddenly Susan, she found out that not only was she the second-lowest-paid member of the cast, but also that Judd Nelson made four times what she made.
Amanda Seyfried Received 10% Less Than What Her Fellow Male Actor Got
Amanda Seyfried disclosed that even though she and a male co-star’s statuses were even, the pay wasn’t. In one of her interviews, she admitted finding out that her male co-star received as much as 10% more than what she did in one of their big-budget features. “It’s not about how much you get, it’s about how fair it is,” Amanda shared.
Diane Keaton Ended Up Not Receiving A Big Part Of The Pay For Something’s Gotta Give
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.
Like this movie, but she did seem too be in the movie more than him.
Robin Wright Had To Negotiate Her Pay In House Of Cards When Kevin Spacey Was One Of The Highest-Paid Actors On TV
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’s Male Co-Stars Got 10 Times More Than Her For The Same Job
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 Would Have Gotten Half Of What Another Actor Was Going To Make
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.”
Rooney Mara Made Half Of What Male Actors Ended Up Making In Several Movies
“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.
Her co-star in TGWTDT was Daniel Craig. When she has the experience and acting chops of Daniel Craig, then she can complain about getting paid less than him.
Amy Adams Got Much Less Compared To Male Actors In American Hustle
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.
Catt Sadler Was Getting Two Times Less Than Her Co-Host Jason Kennedy
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 Only Made A Quarter Of What Her Reported Salary For The Martian Was
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.
Yes this is a problem, but some of the examples equate a lesser known actress with a A list actor. Others were a clear inequity like Mr & Mrs Smith.
Wage gap for women in that industry is a serious issue but many of these don't seem like the best examples to showcase that. Was Downey overpaid in the Iron Man films? Probably. But he's the main character so comparing his salary to Paltrow's, whose role is much smaller, is apples and oranges. I think a better example would be something like Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis being paid much less then Vincent Cassel in Black Swan.
Some of these are understandably outrageous, but some of them make sense. Like the Martian, Matt Damon should have made the most because he had the biggest role, and Iron Man...come on, yeah he should make more. Think part of the problem is also not having big epic roles for women. The other part is the very real fact that female labor has always been devalued.
the crown. the queen was getting paid significantly less than prince phillip (actors I mean)
Even as a woman, I don't care, you're still getting paid ridiculous amounts. I am not going to feel sorry for you. Don't like it? Don't work again and still be a millionaire... waaa.
In The Avengers, Diana Rigg was not only paid less than co-star Patrick Macnee, even the cameraman was paid better than her.
At the exception of a few examples, I don't think Hollywood, or any place where popularity is a factor, is a good example of pay gap. A specific male actor can be in higher demand than a specific female actor. If I'm asked to be the next iron Man for example, I'm pretty sure if guess less than Scarlett yohanson because I'm not in demand at all so I have no leverage for negotiation. I agree it's probably a factor but gender disparity is better down in other places, like an office where you can compete two exactly similar jobs, leaving out the popularity factor.
I like how the comments of the people who disagree with the premise of unfairness are hidden, because we should all think one way only about things and not be exposed to dissenting opinions!
Uh, teh first ones are like, accurate, but what the f**k with Ironman, OBVIOUSLY Robert Downey Jr was paid more then Gwyneth Paltrow, because he was the main character! Lets just remember the movie is called Ironman. Besides, RDJ deserved that money more than Gwyneth Paltrow.
I understand that this is an issue. But I'm also working 70 hrs a week in a job where I am fighting against the overwhelming issues of inequality and poverty in our society.... if someone's making millions of dollars and can afford to feed themselves and their family, and provide their children with luxury education and cultural exposure..... let's focus on someone else.
Oh boohoo, they only made several million dollars for playing make believe for a few weeks? Cry me a river!
Well speak up and keep doing and do it very publicly and often!! Also don't be afraid to drop out, decline the offer, walk away, or anything else when your pay demands are crap compared to what others in an equal role (star, co-star, extra, cameo). Ladies, get those negotiating skills fierce and mean. And speak up and out and often.
A lot of the issues are that Management/Agents negotiate, they are the ones sent the scripts they do the convincing etc, and then the money gets offered and if a Woman gets a bit too pushy in the more money department it is really too easy for someone to say ' if not her lets just insert the other blonde, redhead, brunette, raven beauty.' they are not always seen as their talent but what will look good on the side of the Male lead. When Xfiles was first done, she was not seen as a Beauty, she was just the female that was needed for the storyline., they could have and would have easily replaced her had she not accepted the pay on offer. This is also that the Male actors are not always privy to knowing what someone else in the film is making, they get offered 10M chances are they think their costar is getting the same, why wouldn't they.
This is simply disgusting and it's not only in Hollywood of course! It's everywhere! And it's proven statistically so there's no reason to explain it to those who think that the problem doesn't exist! Women all around the world even more qualified than men at the same position, get paid a lot less and have to fight and fight for the obvious which is sad and exhausting!
Well,well,well...isn't rapewood the liberal bastion where it is all about diversity,being different and gender equality?The place where everyone is virtue signaling?The place where they fight from their bubbles via "powerful speeches" and hashtags?I can't believe that there are people out there who admire those people and their hypocrisy...
Given the highest grossing actors are generally men, would this not just be a reflection of what people go to see in films? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-grossing_actors
If I made 10 million dollars for (I have no idea) a year's work? I'd retire :) There's obviously a pay gap here as in many other lines of work. But since an actor's screen time may vary a lot, it might have been better to compare hourly wages than total sums? Although... someone getting paid 10% more is bad enough, getting paid 100% more (or more still) seems quite ridiculous.
This is ridiculous, where's the list of men that got paid less then the women? It goes by what that actor/actress has in their contracts etc. They go into these movies with an offer, so what they do is their choice. If their offered less it doesn't necessarily mean that it's because of their sex, it's their popularity and talent.
Only Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton are appropriate examples here. All the rest are either male driven projects made for men, or the man was hired to attract female audience, so he was an investment, a marketing strategy.
One thing they don't point out here is what an actor gets paid for a role is set by the negotiation from the start. They don't start off by saying, "By the way, we're paying Brad $20 mil for this movie. How much do you want?" If an actor wants to be paid more, you negotiate for that at the beginning. You don't start whining about it after the fact.
Of course the women should have more lead roles yet I hope you do understand that the actors/actresses are chosen through a complicated data analysis on popularity and cost management. So under this framework it's more related to capitalism rather than gender inequality. In this vein, it's not only the male dominance but also the preference of the female audience that results in men to get more lead roles
Let's face it most of the male actors in the list are better known. Also most actors are just better. Daniel day lewis, Anthony Hopkins, Clint Eastwood, Micheal Caine, Tom hanks, Marlon brando, l dicaprio, j Depp etc so many. Actresses like judi Dench is great, Helen mirren, Kate Winslet and jodie Foster, apart from them I can't think of many that are better than male actors so I guess the pay gap is fair. When it comes to money it's all about business. How much money the actor or actress is able to generate at the box office. The more they can make, the higher they can demand in wages.
All this article tells me is that actors are RIDICULOUSLY over paid!! Also, they should just be paid an hourly wage like any other job/profession! $15/hr for all actors! DONE!
Yes this is a problem, but some of the examples equate a lesser known actress with a A list actor. Others were a clear inequity like Mr & Mrs Smith.
Wage gap for women in that industry is a serious issue but many of these don't seem like the best examples to showcase that. Was Downey overpaid in the Iron Man films? Probably. But he's the main character so comparing his salary to Paltrow's, whose role is much smaller, is apples and oranges. I think a better example would be something like Natalie Portman and Mila Kunis being paid much less then Vincent Cassel in Black Swan.
Some of these are understandably outrageous, but some of them make sense. Like the Martian, Matt Damon should have made the most because he had the biggest role, and Iron Man...come on, yeah he should make more. Think part of the problem is also not having big epic roles for women. The other part is the very real fact that female labor has always been devalued.
the crown. the queen was getting paid significantly less than prince phillip (actors I mean)
Even as a woman, I don't care, you're still getting paid ridiculous amounts. I am not going to feel sorry for you. Don't like it? Don't work again and still be a millionaire... waaa.
In The Avengers, Diana Rigg was not only paid less than co-star Patrick Macnee, even the cameraman was paid better than her.
At the exception of a few examples, I don't think Hollywood, or any place where popularity is a factor, is a good example of pay gap. A specific male actor can be in higher demand than a specific female actor. If I'm asked to be the next iron Man for example, I'm pretty sure if guess less than Scarlett yohanson because I'm not in demand at all so I have no leverage for negotiation. I agree it's probably a factor but gender disparity is better down in other places, like an office where you can compete two exactly similar jobs, leaving out the popularity factor.
I like how the comments of the people who disagree with the premise of unfairness are hidden, because we should all think one way only about things and not be exposed to dissenting opinions!
Uh, teh first ones are like, accurate, but what the f**k with Ironman, OBVIOUSLY Robert Downey Jr was paid more then Gwyneth Paltrow, because he was the main character! Lets just remember the movie is called Ironman. Besides, RDJ deserved that money more than Gwyneth Paltrow.
I understand that this is an issue. But I'm also working 70 hrs a week in a job where I am fighting against the overwhelming issues of inequality and poverty in our society.... if someone's making millions of dollars and can afford to feed themselves and their family, and provide their children with luxury education and cultural exposure..... let's focus on someone else.
Oh boohoo, they only made several million dollars for playing make believe for a few weeks? Cry me a river!
Well speak up and keep doing and do it very publicly and often!! Also don't be afraid to drop out, decline the offer, walk away, or anything else when your pay demands are crap compared to what others in an equal role (star, co-star, extra, cameo). Ladies, get those negotiating skills fierce and mean. And speak up and out and often.
A lot of the issues are that Management/Agents negotiate, they are the ones sent the scripts they do the convincing etc, and then the money gets offered and if a Woman gets a bit too pushy in the more money department it is really too easy for someone to say ' if not her lets just insert the other blonde, redhead, brunette, raven beauty.' they are not always seen as their talent but what will look good on the side of the Male lead. When Xfiles was first done, she was not seen as a Beauty, she was just the female that was needed for the storyline., they could have and would have easily replaced her had she not accepted the pay on offer. This is also that the Male actors are not always privy to knowing what someone else in the film is making, they get offered 10M chances are they think their costar is getting the same, why wouldn't they.
This is simply disgusting and it's not only in Hollywood of course! It's everywhere! And it's proven statistically so there's no reason to explain it to those who think that the problem doesn't exist! Women all around the world even more qualified than men at the same position, get paid a lot less and have to fight and fight for the obvious which is sad and exhausting!
Well,well,well...isn't rapewood the liberal bastion where it is all about diversity,being different and gender equality?The place where everyone is virtue signaling?The place where they fight from their bubbles via "powerful speeches" and hashtags?I can't believe that there are people out there who admire those people and their hypocrisy...
Given the highest grossing actors are generally men, would this not just be a reflection of what people go to see in films? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_highest-grossing_actors
If I made 10 million dollars for (I have no idea) a year's work? I'd retire :) There's obviously a pay gap here as in many other lines of work. But since an actor's screen time may vary a lot, it might have been better to compare hourly wages than total sums? Although... someone getting paid 10% more is bad enough, getting paid 100% more (or more still) seems quite ridiculous.
This is ridiculous, where's the list of men that got paid less then the women? It goes by what that actor/actress has in their contracts etc. They go into these movies with an offer, so what they do is their choice. If their offered less it doesn't necessarily mean that it's because of their sex, it's their popularity and talent.
Only Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton are appropriate examples here. All the rest are either male driven projects made for men, or the man was hired to attract female audience, so he was an investment, a marketing strategy.
One thing they don't point out here is what an actor gets paid for a role is set by the negotiation from the start. They don't start off by saying, "By the way, we're paying Brad $20 mil for this movie. How much do you want?" If an actor wants to be paid more, you negotiate for that at the beginning. You don't start whining about it after the fact.
Of course the women should have more lead roles yet I hope you do understand that the actors/actresses are chosen through a complicated data analysis on popularity and cost management. So under this framework it's more related to capitalism rather than gender inequality. In this vein, it's not only the male dominance but also the preference of the female audience that results in men to get more lead roles
Let's face it most of the male actors in the list are better known. Also most actors are just better. Daniel day lewis, Anthony Hopkins, Clint Eastwood, Micheal Caine, Tom hanks, Marlon brando, l dicaprio, j Depp etc so many. Actresses like judi Dench is great, Helen mirren, Kate Winslet and jodie Foster, apart from them I can't think of many that are better than male actors so I guess the pay gap is fair. When it comes to money it's all about business. How much money the actor or actress is able to generate at the box office. The more they can make, the higher they can demand in wages.
All this article tells me is that actors are RIDICULOUSLY over paid!! Also, they should just be paid an hourly wage like any other job/profession! $15/hr for all actors! DONE!