After an insightful discussion featuring the dramatic actors, THR’s “Close-Up with The Hollywood Reporter” sat down with a number of dramatic actresses to discuss a range of topics, including gender pay disparity and being able to say no to roles. Included within the panel were Emmy nominated lead actresses Elisabeth Moss (“The Handmaid’s Tale”), Sandra Oh (“Killing Eve”), and Claire Foy (“The Queen”), in addition to best supporting actress nominee Thandie Newton (“Westworld”). Rounding out the discussion were Maggie Gyllenhaal (“The Deuce”) and Angela Bassett (“9-1-1”).
Sandra Oh, who has been getting rave reviews for “Killing Eve,” began the conversation by explaining how she picks her roles, noting, “It takes a while to get to a point in your career where you can actually make a choice. And after a decade of my life on a show [‘Grey’s Anatomy‘], I had enough economic power to be able to say no. Those four years were like active waiting. I was not working … to be able to figure out what the right thing is and what it is to say no and what it is to say yes. It’s like falling in love.”
Moss has a similar perspective, saying, “Luckily, I work in a really incredibly collaborative atmosphere on my show that I’ve never experienced before – and I’ve been around for a while. As one of the only female executive producers, obviously, there’s a weight there. I have a perspective that nobody else will have, and that’s so respected and appreciated. That shouldn’t be crazy that it’s appreciated, it should be appreciated.”
In time, the conversation turned to pay disparity. Claire Foy, when discussing the news that co-star Matt Smith was getting paid more than her, said, “I [could have] kept my mouth shut and said, ‘I have nothing to say, I’m a robot.’ I was part of a really incredible show that I’m really proud of and grateful for, but that shouldn’t stop me from having an opinion about something that I have been brought into the center of. It would be very different if it was something that I didn’t have an opinion on, but it’s something that I feel really strongly about.”
The repercussions of that disparity have been throughout the industry as Gyllenhaal explains, “there was so much talk, and where was the action? And then I just get a call going over the bridge in Brooklyn saying my salary now is way higher than I ever considered it would be, and it’s because of these conversations.”
Be sure to watch the entire conversation below, which looks at a number of other topics including navigating male and female nudity on set and the power that comes along with being an actress/producer.