Following the infamous Sony hack in 2015, Jennifer Lawrence spoke out against the gender pay inequality in Hollywood, in an impassioned article she wrote for friend and Girls star, Lena Dunham's Lenny Letter newsletter.
In it, she opened up about how the leak of private information shed light on the fact she'd earned considerably less than her male co-stars in the 2013 film American Hustle, admitting she felt she had 'failed as a negotiator because I gave up early'.
'I'm over trying to find the "adorable" way to state my opinion and still be likeable," she added. 'Fuck that.'
Fast forward a year and the Oscar winner famously demanded she be paid £14 million for her role opposite Chris Pratt in Passengers and this year, made sure she was getting paid the same wage as her Mother! co-star Javier Bardem.
As a result, Lawrence has shown her support for E! News presenter Catt Saddler who officially announced her departure from the show earlier this week due to a serious pay disparity with her male colleague, Jason Kennedy.
And we're not just talking about a few hundred pounds here or there.
In an interview with People, the mother-of-two revealed both her and Kennedy had started the same year and had been working 'essentially similar jobs, if not the same hob', yet she describes he 'wasn't just making a little bit more than me but was making double my salary and has been for several years'.
Yes, double.
'Not only did [E!] refuse to pay me as much as my male counterpart, but they didn't come close—nowhere close, not even remotely close,' she explained.
In a statement to People, an E! spokesperson said, "E! compensates employees fairly and appropriately based on their roles, regardless of gender [...]'
Yesterday, Lawrence took to her Facebook page to share a post written by Sadler on her website, The Cattwalk in which she details her decision to leave the entertainment show.
The 27-year-lold captioned the shared article: 'Thank you Catt for sharing your story.'
In the post, Sadler questions:
'How can I operate with integrity and stay on at E if they're not willing to pay me the same as him? Or at least come close? How can I accept an offer that shows they do not value my contributions and paralleled dedication all these years? How can I not echo the actions of my heroes and stand for what is right no matter what the cost? How can I remain silent when my rights under the law have been violated?'
Several other male and female celebrities have taken to social media to show their admiration for Sadler and their disgust at Hollywood's gender pay gap epidemic.
Saddler, we salute you.
Katie O'Malley is the Site Director on ELLE UK. On a daily basis you’ll find Katie managing all digital workflow, editing site, video and newsletter content, liaising with commercial and sales teams on new partnerships and deals (eg Nike, Tiffany & Co., Cartier etc), implementing new digital strategies and compiling in-depth data traffic, SEO and ecomm reports. In addition to appearing on the radio and on TV, as well as interviewing everyone from Oprah Winfrey to Rishi Sunak PM, Katie enjoys writing about lifestyle, culture, wellness, fitness, fashion, and more.
