12 times celebrities fought for equal pay in their starring roles

Talia LakritzDec 30, 2020, 04:23 IST

Octavia Spencer, Patricia Arquette, and Jessica Chastain have spoken out about Hollywood's gender pay gap.Barcroft Media/Getty Images, Kevin Winter/Getty Images, Jon Kopaloff/Getty Images

January 1, 2021 is the third anniversary of the launch of the Time's Up movement combating gender-based discrimination in Hollywood and beyond.
Patricia Arquette called for wage equality in her viral 2015 Oscars acceptance speech and took her activism to Capitol Hill.
Jessica Chastain turned down a role with a wage gap in 2017, and she negotiated equal pay for herself and Octavia Spencer in 2018.
Chadwick Boseman took a pay cut in order for Sienna Miller to be paid equally for "21 Bridges."

On January 1, 2018, spurred by the revelation of Harvey Weinstein's widespread sexual misconduct and the #MeToo movement, celebrities came together to protest sexual harassment and gender-based discrimination in Hollywood and beyond. They founded a movement of their own called Time's Up to fight for safer workplaces and equal pay in the entertainment industry.

Even before the Time's Up movement, women in Hollywood have spoken out about being paid less than their male co-stars. Sometimes, they've been able to negotiate fair compensation. Other times, they didn't even know they were being paid less until after the fact.

Here are 12 times actors fought for the equal pay they deserved.

Even after Patricia Arquette's viral Oscars acceptance speech, in which she called out America's gender pay gap, she told The Daily Beast that she's still offered less for her work than men.

Patricia Arquette. Kris Connor/Getty Images

Even after Patricia Arquette's viral Oscars acceptance speech, in which she called out America's gender pay gap, she told The Daily Beast that she's still offered less for her work than men.

Jessica Chastain told Variety that she "drew a line in the sand" when she turned down a role with a wage gap in 2017.

Jessica Chastain. Getty

Chastain also helped Octavia Spencer negotiate for higher pay after Spencer shared what it was like as a woman of color in the film industry.

Octavia Spencer and Jessica Chastain. Kevork Djansezian/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images via Getty Images

Charlize Theron negotiated a reported $10 million paycheck for "The Huntsman," the same as her co-star Chris Hemsworth.

Charlize Theron. Chris Jackson/ Getty Images

When Robin Wright asked to be paid the same as co-star Kevin Spacey on Netflix's "House of Cards," she told executives, "You better pay me or I'm going to go public."

Robin Wright. Frazer Harrison/GettyImages

Jennifer Lawrence wrote about her experience with Hollywood's gender pay gap in Lena Dunham's Lenny newsletter in a 2015 essay entitled "Why Do I Make Less Than My Co-Stars?"

Jennifer Lawrence. Francois Mori/AP Photos

Jennifer Lawrence wrote about her experience with Hollywood's gender pay gap in Lena Dunham's Lenny newsletter in a 2015 essay entitled "Why Do I Make Less Than My Co-Stars?"

It took three seasons of "The X-Files" before Gillian Anderson was paid the same as co-star David Duchovny.

Gillian Anderson and David Duchovny in "The X-Files." FOX Image Collection via Getty Images

Chadwick Boseman donated part of his salary to ensure that "21 Bridges" co-star Sienna Miller would be paid fairly.

Chadwick Boseman and Sienna Miller. Araya Diaz/Getty

Emmy Rossum refused to sign on for season eight of "Shameless" until she received the same salary as her co-star William H. Macy.

Emmy Rossum. Richard Shotwell/Invision/AP

Claire Foy played Queen Elizabeth in "The Crown," but was paid less than her co-star Matt Smith. She called the revelation "embarrassing," and was eventually paid more.

Claire Foy. John Phillips/Getty

Amanda Seyfried told The Sunday Times that she was once paid 10% of what her male co-star was making on a big-budget film.

Amanda Seyfried. Lintao Zhang/Getty Images

Julie Delpy wasn't paid the same as co-star Ethan Hawke until the third installment of the "Before" trilogy.

Julie Delpy. Isa Foltin/WireImage/Getty Images

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12 times celebrities fought for equal pay in their starring roles

Even after Patricia Arquette's viral Oscars acceptance speech, in which she called out America's gender pay gap, she told The Daily Beast that she's still offered less for her work than men.

Jessica Chastain told Variety that she "drew a line in the sand" when she turned down a role with a wage gap in 2017.

Chastain also helped Octavia Spencer negotiate for higher pay after Spencer shared what it was like as a woman of color in the film industry.

Charlize Theron negotiated a reported $10 million paycheck for "The Huntsman," the same as her co-star Chris Hemsworth.

When Robin Wright asked to be paid the same as co-star Kevin Spacey on Netflix's "House of Cards," she told executives, "You better pay me or I'm going to go public."

Jennifer Lawrence wrote about her experience with Hollywood's gender pay gap in Lena Dunham's Lenny newsletter in a 2015 essay entitled "Why Do I Make Less Than My Co-Stars?"

It took three seasons of "The X-Files" before Gillian Anderson was paid the same as co-star David Duchovny.

Chadwick Boseman donated part of his salary to ensure that "21 Bridges" co-star Sienna Miller would be paid fairly.

Emmy Rossum refused to sign on for season eight of "Shameless" until she received the same salary as her co-star William H. Macy.

Claire Foy played Queen Elizabeth in "The Crown," but was paid less than her co-star Matt Smith. She called the revelation "embarrassing," and was eventually paid more.

Amanda Seyfried told The Sunday Times that she was once paid 10% of what her male co-star was making on a big-budget film.

Julie Delpy wasn't paid the same as co-star Ethan Hawke until the third installment of the "Before" trilogy.