After two seasons of HBO’s drama series Westworld, lead actress Evan Rachel Wood will finally get paid the same amount as her male co-stars. During a video interview with The Wrap, the television star revealed that her raise will go into effect when the show’s potential third season begins filming.
Westworld broke records for HBO as the most-watched first season for HBO, garnering an average of 12 million viewers across all platforms. The second season premieres on April 22.
“I think I’m just now to the point where I’m getting paid the same as my male co-stars,” Wood said. “I was just told that, you know, ‘Hey you’re getting equal pay.’ And I almost got emotional. I was like, ‘I have never been paid the same as my male counterparts. Never, never.”
Wood’s male co-stars include Anthony Hopkins, Ed Harris, and Jeffrey Wright. Wood said she initially agreed to a lower wage because Hopkins and Harris were accomplished Oscar-winning actors.
Wood is the latest actress to publicly discuss the pay gap in Hollywood, a growing subject of scrutiny in the industry. After an executive producer of Netflix’s The Crown recently revealed that Claire Foy, who played Queen Elizabeth, was paid less than her co-star Matt Smith who portrays Prince Philip, the company announced that the disparity would be corrected moving forward.
Read more at The Wrap