Sienna Miller has claimed a powerful Broadway producer once rudely shut down her request for the same pay as a male co-star.
In a cover interview for British Vogue, the British actress recalled how she was “offered less than half” of what her male co-star was set to earn each week to star in a play. Accordingly, Sienna went back to the producer and asked for equal pay.
“I said to the producer, who was extremely powerful, ‘It’s not about money – it’s about fairness and respect,’ thinking they’d come back and say, ‘Of course, of course.’ But they didn’t. They just said, ‘Well, f**k off then,'” she claimed.
The moment ended being “pivotal” for Sienna because she initially “felt terrible about myself and embarrassed” about asking for more money but eventually realised “I had every right to be equally subsidised for the work that I would have done”.
The 40-year-old noted that actors feel more capable of saying “no” nowadays because the industry has changed so much.
“(Younger actors) have the word ‘no’ in their language in a way that I didn’t. (Now) if you say, ‘I don’t feel comfortable’ in front of any form of executive, they’re s**tting their pants. You’re included in a conversation about your level of comfort,” she explained.
Sienna declined to name the production, however, her Broadway credits include 2009’s After Miss Julie and 2015’s Cabaret.
This isn’t the first time she has spoken about pay. After her 21 Bridges co-star Chadwick Boseman passed away in 2020, Sienna revealed that he donated a portion of his salary to her after film bosses refused to grant her fee.
“He said, ‘You’re getting paid what you deserve, and what you’re worth.’ It’s just unfathomable to imagine another man in that town behaving that graciously or respectfully,” she told Empire magazine. “But there was no showiness, it was, ‘Of course I’ll get you to that number, because that’s what you should be paid.'”
Read More
Photo Credit:
