Mark Wahlberg Will Donate $1.5 Million To Time’s Up Following Pay Gap Controversy

Actor Mark Wahlberg will donate $1.5 million to the Time’s Up Legal Defence Fund in actress Michelle Williams’ name, after it emerged that he earned more than 1000 times more than Williams during the reshoots on their movie All the Money in the World.

The kidnapping thriller made headlines in November after director Ridley Scott announced that he would reshoot sections of the film to replace disgraced actor and alleged sexual abuser Kevin Spacey with Christopher Plummer. But the reshoots became the subject of considerable controversy after it emerged last week that Wahlberg was paid $1.5 million to return to the set, whereas Williams earned just $1,000. Many commentators pointed to the outrageous disparity as a particularly egregious example of the gender wage gap that remains prevalent in the entertainment industry as well as… just about every other industry.

Adding insult to injury was the fact that both Wahlberg and Williams are represented by the same agency, William Morris Endeavor (WME).

In respnse to the controversy, Wahlberg today announced that he would donate the full $1.5 million to the Time’s Up Legal Defence Fund, which was established to protect vulnerable women from the consequences of speaking out about sexual harassment and assault. In a short statement, the actor said his reshoot fee had become “an important topic of conversation”, adding that he supported the fight for fair pay “100%”.

In addition to Wahlberg’s donation, WME will give a further $500,000. “The current conversation is a reminder that those of us in a position of influence have a responsibility to challenge inequities, including the gender wage gap,” said the agency in a statement.

The reaction to the news has been mixed, with some on social media praising Wahlberg and WME for doing the right thing, and others pointing out that they only did so because they were being publicly shamed. Either way, the news makes a compelling case for speaking out about wage inequality and putting pressure on people with the power to affect real change.

This is a good outcome, and a good reminder of the importance of making inequity public.

— Mark Harris (@MarkHarrisNYC) January 13, 2018

Just read in @THR that Mark Wahlberg is donating the $1.5 million he made and WME is donating an additional $500k to #TIMESUP in Michelle Williams name. Amazing. The lesson here is that pressure for equal pay works.

— Melissa Silverstein (@melsil) January 13, 2018

—

h/t Deadline