Sienna Miller Says She Was Once Told to 'F--- Off' by Broadway Producer After Asking About Equal Pay
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David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Sienna Miller
Sienna Miller is revealing details about a negative reaction she says she once got after bringing up the topic of equal pay with a Broadway producer.
In her December cover story for British Vogue, the 40-year-old actress claimed she was "offered less than half" the weekly pay of what a male costar would make for a play they were doing on the Great White Way.
While she didn't name the show or producer ("I don't want to be mean"), Miller has starred in two Broadway productions — Cabaret in 2015 and After Miss Julie in 2009 — and told British Vogue she did end up doing the show in question.
"I said to the producer, who was extremely powerful, it's not about money — it's about fairness and respect, thinking they'd come back and say, 'Of course, of course,' " she recalled.
Miller added, "But they didn't. They just said, 'Well f--- off then.' "
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Miller went on to reflect on feeling "terrible and embarrassed" about the exchange, but later realized it was a "pivotal moment."
"I realized I had every right to be equally subsidized for the work that I would have done," the actress told the outlet.
She also opened up about the late Chadwick Boseman ensuring she had equal pay for their work on the 2019 film 21 Bridges. (Boseman, who died in August 2020 at age 43 after a years-long battle with cancer, was also a producer on the movie.)
" 'What you did was extraordinary and meant the world,' " Miller recalled of what she told Boseman, who gave her a portion of his own salary to ensure she was compensated fairly.
She added, "He came up to me when we wrapped and said, 'You got paid what you deserved.' "
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Miller previously reflected on the experience with Boseman in a September 2020 interview with Empire, opening up about the "astounding" lengths the actor went to get her involved in 21 Bridges, as she was taking a break from acting at the time.
"This was a pretty big-budget film, and I know that everybody understands about the pay disparity in Hollywood, but I asked for a number that the studio wouldn't get to. And because I was hesitant to go back to work and my daughter was starting school and it was an inconvenient time, I said, 'I'll do it if I'm compensated in the right way,' " she explained.
"And Chadwick ended up donating some of his salary to get me to the number that I had asked for. He said that that was what I deserved to be paid," Miller continued.
"It was about the most astounding thing that I've experienced," she added. "That kind of thing just doesn't happen. He said, 'You're getting paid what you deserve, and what you're worth.' It's just unfathomable to imagine another man in that town behaving that graciously or respectfully."
