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Was Michelle Williams Paid Less Than Mark Wahlberg?

Mark Wahlberg Donates $1.5 Million to the Time's Up Legal Fund in Michelle Williams's Name

Update: On Saturday, Mark Wahlberg agreed to donate the $1.5 million he received for his All the Money in the World reshoots to the Time's Up legal fund. When the news broke that Wahlberg made 1,500 times more than his costar Michelle Williams, it sparked a public outcry, with many arguing that it was a perfect example of the gender wage gap that exists in many industries.

"Over the last few days, my reshoot fee for All the Money in the World has become an important topic of conversation," Wahlberg said in a statement. "I 100 percent 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." WME, the talent agency that serves as representatives for both Wahlberg and Williams, also issued a statement pledging a donation of $500,000 to the cause.

Additional reporting by Terry Carter

Original story: Michelle Williams was paid less than a fraction of a percent of the fee her costar in All the Money in the World Mark Wahlberg earned for reshoots on the movie, according to a new report by USA Today's Andrea Mandell. The nearly completed film underwent an overhaul late last year when Christopher Plummer stepped in to take over the role of J. Paul Getty from Kevin Spacey. The recasting came after a number of sexual-abuse allegations against Kevin Spacey prompted his firing from both the film and his Netflix series House of Cards.

When the reshoots were announced, director and producer Ridley Scott publicly stated that he and the key cast members (not including Plummer) decided to forego additional payment for the reshoots. At the time, Williams also told USA Today, "I said I'd be wherever they needed me, whenever they needed me. And they could have my salary, they could have my holiday, whatever they wanted. Because I appreciated so much that they were making this massive effort."

In late November, The Washington Post first reported that Wahlberg was being paid more than Williams on reshoots but noted she was still likely being paid hundreds of thousands of dollars for the work. USA Today's new story cites three sources confirming that, in fact, Wahlberg earned $1.5 million for the additional work while Williams took only an $80-a-day per diem, equalling less than $1,000 total.

The news of the extreme salary gap seems especially striking coming just days after Time's Up made a public push for gender equality at the Golden Globes, with women including Debra Messing addressing pay disparity head-on in interviews. Williams herself brought #MeToo founder Tarana Burke as her plus-one to the award show in a bid to raise awareness around sexual assault and women's rights.

Representatives for Williams and Wahlberg — who are both repped at William Morris Entertainment — have not commented on the report. But that hasn't stopped several of Williams's friends and colleagues from speaking out and sharing their outrage about the reported pay disparity on Twitter.

Williams was nominated for a Golden Globe for her role in All the Money in the World. Wahlberg was not.

Image Source: Getty / Kevin Winter
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