Hollywood’s gender pay gap is in the spotlight almost as much as the stars are these days.
Highlighted in the Sony hack and trumpeted by some of the entertainment industry’s most recognizable faces is the fact that female actresses continue to earn significantly less than their male counterparts.
Well, Jennifer Lawrence is damn sick of it – and she’s penned an essay aptly titled “Why Do I Make Less Than My Male Co-Stars?” to let the world know her thoughts.
The essay appeared today in Lena Dunham’s newsletter, Lenny.
“When the Sony [email] hack happened and I found out how much less I was being paid than [male co-stars], I didn’t get mad at Sony. I got mad at myself,” writes Lawrence. “I failed as a negotiator because I gave up early. I didn’t want to keep fighting over millions of dollars that, frankly, due to two [movie] franchises, I don’t need.”
It’s true that Hollywood’s leading ladies don’t exactly need an extra couple of million added to their paycheques. But greed isn’t the issue here. Still, Lawrence writes that she was hesitant to discuss the issue for a few reasons, one of which was her income bracket. Another was her desire to remain well liked.
“It’s hard for me to speak about my experience as a working woman because I can safely say my problems aren’t exactly relatable…But if I’m honest with myself, I would be lying if I didn’t say there was an element of wanting to be liked that influenced my decision to close the deal without a real fight. I didn’t want to seem ‘difficult’ or ‘spoiled.'”
Now, Lawrence isn’t afraid to say exactly what’s on her mind.
“I’m over trying to find the ‘adorable’ way to state my opinion and still be likable!,” she writes.
And she isn’t the only one.
Patricia Arquette gave one of the most memorable speeches of the evening on the issue at this year’s Academy Awards. Last week Hollywood screen legend Meryl Streep said that even she receives less pay than her male co-stars. As a growing number of influential actresses get behind the cause, we can (thankfully) expect to hear a lot more about the issue until a change is finally made – and one that hopefully includes professions across the board.
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