Hollywood is just one of the many industries where the pay gap between men and women can be the starkest, even when it comes to actors with very similar resumes. But there are signs of progress. For instance, at this year's Cannes Film Festival, which is currently unfolding on the French Riviera, Penelope Cruz and husband Javier Bardem revealed they received the same pay for their roles in the film Everybody Knows, Vulture reports. "Actually, yes," Cruz answered when a journalist quizzed the pair on if they were paid equally for the film. Bardem could be seen nodding in agreement.
For a pair whose careers mirror each other in many ways—from concurrently straddling the worlds of Spanish cinema and Hollywood, to having one Academy Award each alongside multiple nominations—there's no better example of equality in action.
While even the most recent numbers show just how much disparity exists across the industry, not just in pay but in representation behind and in front of the camera, there are some networks and studios trying to make things right. HBO recently did a "correction" of salaries on all of its shows to fix any inappropriate wage gaps, while Netflix is giving actress Claire Foye $275,000 in retroactive pay after it was discovered that her The Crown co-star Matt Smith made significantly more than her. We guess this is what happens when you speak truth to power.
