This is Amy Schumer. Perhaps you've heard of her!
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Amy's had a ~rather successful~ couple of years with an Emmy-winning TV series, a 'lil box office smash called Trainwreck, a New York Times bestselling memoir, and a world tour.
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Point being, Amy has proved she can rake in the viewers. So nobody was too surprised when Netflix gave her a standup special last year.
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But a recent article in Variety reveals the behind-the-scenes struggle Amy faced when it came to getting fair pay for The Leather Special.
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According to Variety, Amy was paid $11 million for the special. But she later learned Netflix had paid some male comedians almost double that amount.
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Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle earned $20 million each for their specials — which, good for them! They're comedic legends. But it does raise questions about the fairness of Amy's pay.
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So Amy and her team went back to Netflix and asked for more $$$. And she came out with — as Variety puts it — "significantly more compensation."
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The Variety story has been garnering lots of attention since it was published yesterday. Today, Amy posted an Instagram addressing the controversy head-on.
She wrote: "Hot dog dog. Thanks for chiming in on what you feel I deserve to be paid. I believe women deserve equal pay. However I don't believe I deserve equal pay to Chris and Dave. They are legends and 2 of the greatest comics of all time. I would like to say that I have been selling out arenas these last couple years. Something a female comic has never done. That's a big deal to me, especially because I know I do my best every night on stage for the audience and they have a good time. I didn't ask for the same as my friends. I did ask for more than the initial offer. I will continue to work my ass off and be the best performer I can be. The reports of me 'demanding' or 'insisting' on equal pay to them aren't a true. #fat #stealsjokes"
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So, just to recap here:
1. Netflix initially paid Amy Schumer a whole lot less than they gave Chappelle and Rock.
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2. Part of that enormous pay difference can be chalked up to industry experience, and part of it seemed sexist.
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3. Amy asked Netflix for more money, and they agreed that she deserved it. And everyone walked away very rich and very happy.
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Get money get paid, Schumer.
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