The glamorous world of Hollywood is not as lustrous as it seems from the outside. The film industry veils a grotesque reality that perhaps only female actors have experienced. The gender wage gap and sexist views of females have been prevailing concepts in society, and even the film industry is a part of it.
However, not everyone sits back and endures injustice, as British actress Gillian Anderson chose to stand up for herself and break all the stereotypes.
Gillian Anderson fought to eradicate the gender age gap
Gillian Anderson has appeared in many incredible films throughout her career. However, her journey hasn’t been a cakewalk. While establishing herself in Hollywood, the actress also had to fight for her basic rights, like equal pay.
In Hollywood, where an actor is appreciated for his great masculinity, a female actor is either objectified or portrayed as a damsel. Regardless of their immense talent, actresses often find themselves in a position subordinate to actors. This disparity is notably reflected in the significant difference in their respective salaries.
However, Anderson is not someone who doesn’t take a stand for herself. Rather, the actress made sure to break all such stereotypes prevailing in the film industry and made sure that her contribution to the film was considered equal to that of any other lead actor.
The actress appeared in the groundbreaking show of its time, X-Files. The television series has made a major contribution to giving a base to the likes of Supernatural and Stranger Things. Where the series focuses on paranormal activities, the chemistry between Anderson and David Duchovny gives a different hook to the series.
While both actors were the lead cast of the series, and undoubtedly aced their roles, before the eyes of the makers, they weren’t the same. According to the actress, she was offered less money than her co-star, Duchovny.
Moreover, the actress revealed that she often felt pressured to play the sidekick role. During an interview with The Daily Beast, the actress reflected on the double standards of Hollywood. The actress claimed that she was always expected to walk behind Duchovny while filming. The actress said,
“I can only imagine that at the beginning, they wanted me to be the sidekick. Or that, somehow, maybe it was enough of a change just to see a woman having this kind of intellectual repartee with a man on camera, and surely the audience couldn’t deal with actually seeing them walk side by side!”
The actress didn’t follow the stereotypical norms and decided to not just fight for equal screen time but for equal pay as well. Anderson said,
“I don’t know how long it lasted or if it changed because I eventually said, ‘F**k no! No!’ I don’t remember somebody saying, ‘OK, now you get to walk alongside him.’ But I imagine it had more to do with my intolerance and spunk than it being an allowance that was made.”
Fighting for her rights was not a one-day task, yet the actress didn’t give up and made sure she found a way out.
How did Gillian Anderson manage to break the stereotype?
Gillian Andreson fought for three years to get the same remuneration as her co-star, Duchovny. The actress revealed that she was putting in the same effort as Duchovny for half of his salary. The actress said,
“It was shocking to me, given all the work that I had done in the past, to get us to be paid fairly. I worked really hard toward that and finally got somewhere with it […] And then it happened again! I don’t even know what to say about it.”
The actress decided not to tolerate the injustice and stood firm in her notion of getting equal pay. And by the 10th and 11th seasons of the series, the actress managed to get equal pay.
Source: Slash Film
