Hollywood, black actresses and the squishy metrics of who gets paid what
It's taboo to talk about how much money you make - or how little. That's one reason inequities persist. The pay gap hits women of color the hardest, with black actresses in Hollywood talking about it openly in recent weeks.
Viola Davis, Octavia Spencer and Mo'Nique (Oscar winners each) have all spoken on record about their experience. In a more roundabout fashion, so has Tracee Ellis Ross, who picked up a Golden Globe this year for her performance on "Black-ish."
In her Oscar acceptance speech earlier this week, Frances McDormand championed the idea of an inclusion rider, wherein stars can use their leverage to ensure producers hire a larger number of actors otherwise marginalized in Hollywood. That's great.
(Even if Netflix has been the first to openly reject the idea: CEO Reed Hastings said this week he would rather just talk about inclusion than contractually agree to it.)
But just as important is what people are getting paid.
Especially when research shows that among box office hits, movies about women outearn movies about men. And with "Black Panther" set to hit the $1 billion mark in a matter of days, it's obvious movies starring black actors have the potential to make big money.
Here's Viola Davis in a recent interview with Porter magazine explaining
You’re reading a preview, subscribe to read more.
Start your free 30 days