Octavia Spencer facing pay gap shocked Jessica Chastain
Jessica Chastain has opened up about helping Octavia Spencer negotiate a salary five times the original figure offered to her. Chastain, 41, who starred with the Oscarwinner in The Help (2011), says she was shocked that a woman of colour of Spencer’s calibre could be discriminated against in such a blatant manner.
“Of course, I knew that women of colour got paid less. I just assumed, which is dangerous. I assumed a woman like Octavia Spencer would be compensated fairly for the work she’s done and for the awards she’s received,” Chastain told talk show host Hoda Kotb, on Today.
Chastain, who has been a vocal supporter of pay equity, previously said she “cares more” about Spencer’s salary than her own.
Once she found about what Spencer was being offered on their upcoming Christmas comedy, directed by The Big Sick (2017) helmer Michael Showalter, the actor decided to tie their deals together to bring up her co-star’s pay.
The manoeuvre was successful, and Spencer was able to negotiate for an amount five times her original pay.
Spencer had first revealed the incident in January, at the Sundance Film Festival. “I told her about the gross disparity in our salaries. She provided a much-needed shoulder and listened. And then she did what she always does: she took up my cause and made it her own,” Spencer had said.
She praised Chastain, saying, “As a friend, she’s your biggest cheerleader; but as a colleague, she’s your most vocal advocate.”