Benedict Cumberbatch Says He Will Only Accept Roles where Female Co-Stars Are Paid Equally
The social climate in the entertainment industry nowadays is shifting in attempts to be more inclusive of marginalized communities. A rising issue that’s finally getting more notice: pay equality. Most well-known has been Jessica Chastain’s public statement where she tied her pay to that of actress Octavia Spencer. Now, actor Benedict Cumberbatch has stepped forward to do the same.
Cumberbatch (Sherlock, Doctor Strange) had stated, “Look at your quotas. Ask what women are being paid, and say: ‘If she’s not paid the same as the men, I’m not doing it.'” He further added, “Equal pay and a place at the table are the central tenets of feminism.”
It may not be all talk from the Marvel actor seeing as his production company SunnyMarch is run by majority women and focuses more on female-focused dramas.
“I’m proud that [partner] Adam [Ackland] and I are the only men in our production company; our next project is a female story with a female lens about motherhood, in a time of environmental disaster,” Cumberbatch also said. “If it’s centered around my name, to get investors, then we can use that attention for a raft of female projects. Half the audience is female!”
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Source: Deadline
