Tracee Ellis Ross has taken to Twitter to address rumours she demanded a higher salary to continue working on her hit ABC sitcom, Black-ish.
'There has been a lot of conversation and speculation the last few days regarding my Black-ish salary. I was in a renegotiation, like many actors find themselves in during the fourth season of a successful show,' the 45-year-old actress began her response, posted to Twitter on Saturday.
'I wanted to be compensated in a way that matches my contribution to a show that I love for many reasons, including the opportunity it allows me to reshape what it is to be a fully realised black woman on TV.'
The actress' post was in response to a report published by The Hollywood Reporter on Thursday. In the article, THR reported the star was getting paid considerably less money than her co-star Anthony Anderson (who also serves as an executive producer for the show) and was considering appearing in fewer episodes if she wasn't brought 'up to Anderson's level'.
Ross, who didn't explicitly confirm the pay disparity between the two salaries, added: 'The words and thoughts that were in the original article that started this public conversation were not mine; there were never any threats. I wish I would have been called by the reporter to confirm that.'
'Having had my renegotiation become a public conversation was awkward, but I'm grateful for the outpouring of support,' the Girlfriends star continued.
She concluded her retort: 'I'm truly thankful that important conversations are taking place about fighting for women's worth and equality, and tightening the pay gap in every industry.'
Ross has been a vociferous supporter of the Time's Up movement and recently explained her decision to wear black on the Golden Globes red carpet.
'I wear black today as a "we" not as an "I", as a celebration of our collective power as women, as an embodiment of sisterhood, solidarity and the work being done to create structural change,' she said, reports People.
Ross' alleged pay disparity comes weeks after it was reported Mark Wahlberg was paid approximately eight times more money than Michelle Williams for their recent film All The Money.
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