Earlier this week news broke that Mark Wahlberg had demanded $1.5 million to reshoot scenes for All the Money in the World in order to facilitate the removal of Kevin Spacey. His costar Michelle Williams was paid less than $1,000.
Mark Wahlberg was paid $1.5 million for reshooting his scenes in All the Money in the World, three people familiar with the situation but not authorized to speak publicly about it tell USA TODAY, while Michelle Williams was paid an $80 per diem totaling less than $1,000.
That works out to Williams being paid less than 1% of her male co-star.
The cruel irony is the studio was attempting to address one of the systemic issues in Hollywood (rampant sexual misconduct, abuse, and harassment by powerful men) and ended up highlighting another one (unequal pay). Obviously Williams had freely agreed to work for per diem, but the controversy arose when it became obvious she hadn’t been told of Wahlberg’s deal.
Via Deadline, Wahlberg is donating that $1.5 million to the #TimesUp victim’s organization:
Mark Wahlberg has announced that he will donate in Michelle Williams’ name the $1.5 million in money he received for All The Money In The World reshoots. The donation is being made to #TimesUp, the legal fund for sexual abuse and harassment victims that was established late last year.
Wahlberg issued this statement: “Over the last few days my reshoot fee for All The Money in the World has become an important topic of conversation. I 100% support the fight for fair pay and I’m donating the $1.5 million to the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund in Michelle Williams’ name.
One of the more awkward elements of the original story was that Wahlberg, Williams, and Scott all share an agency, William Morris. Perhaps predictably, and almost positively to placate Williams, William Morris also issued a statement:
Said WME in a statement: “The current conversation is a reminder that those of us in a poition of influence have a responsibility to challenge inequities, including the gender wage gap. In recognition of the pay discrepancy on All The Money In The World reshoots, WME is donating an additional $500,000 to the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund in Michelle Williams’ name, following our $1 million pledge to the organization earlier this month. It’s crucial that this conversation continues within our community and we are committed to being part of the solution.”
Whether that’s enough to keep Williams on their roster remains to be seen, but it’s certainly worth the effort, and a worthy cause overall. Hopefully this helps to illustrate that there’s more than one problem in Hollywood.
[Deadline]
