Leslie Jones is another black woman in Hollywood who’s experienced unequal pay compared to her co-stars.
In her new memoir, “Leslie F*cking Jones,” the comedienne-actress unpacked the fraught drama surrounding her role in
2016’s ‘Ghostbusters’ alongside white stars Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Wiig.
Jones claimed she was paid “way less” than her co-stars in the Paul Feig-directed reimagining of the 1980s fan favorite.“ It was made clear to me
at times during the process that I was lucky to even be on that movie, but honestly, I was thinking, ‘I don’t have to be in this muthaf-cka,’ especially
as I got paid way less than Melissa McCarthy and Kristen Wiig,” the 56-year old actress wrote in an excerpt of her memoir, shared by Rolling
Stone Sept. 19.
“No knock on them, but my first offer was to do that movie for $67,000. I had to fight to get more (in the end I got $150K), but the message was
clear: ‘This is gonna blow you up — after this, you’re made for life,’ all that kind of sh-t, as though I hadn’t had decades of a successful career
already.”
- What are your thoughts on Jones’ having to fight for her wages?
