A prince trumps the queen in TV pay
Not even the queen of England can get an equal slice of the mincemeat pie. Actress Claire Foy, who charmed critics and fans as a young Queen Elizabeth II in Netflix series The Crown, was paid less than co-star Matt Smith, who played the queen’s husband, executive producers acknowledged Tuesday at a conference in Jerusalem.
Smith came to Netflix as an established actor in Britain, most notably on Doctor Who from 2010 to 2013 — a fact that informed the producers’ decision around salary, they said at the conference.
Aside from a role in 2015 in the Golden Globe-winning miniseries Wolf Hall, Foy, 33, was a relative unknown when she was cast in The Crown. But in the show’s first two seasons, Foy became its breakout star, earning a Best Actress Golden Globe and Emmy for Season 1, and a Golden Globe nomination for Season 2. Smith, 35, was not nominated for either for his role as Prince Philip.
In the drama’s coming seasons, “no one gets paid more than the queen,” said producer Suzanne Mackie.
But that won’t benefit Foy, who was reportedly paid $40,000 (U.S.) an episode; producers are recasting the entire ensemble for Season 3 with Olivia Colman playing Elizabeth.
Foy will star in the films The Girl in the Spider’s Web and Damien Chazelle’s First Man, both expected this year.
This isn’t the first time a woman has been paid less than a lower-billed actor. Michelle Williams earned a fraction of what Mark Wahlberg did for reshoots of Ridley Scott’s All the Money in the World.