Mo’Nique and Wanda Sykes Accuse Netflix of Paying Black Female Stars Less

Bridget Read
Updated
Comedians Mo‘Nique and Wanda Sykes accused Netflix of paying them much less than white or male actors for comedy specials.

Legendary comedians Wanda Sykes and Mo’Nique have accused streaming giant Netflix of paying them less than other stars, broadening recent conversations about the gender pay gap in Hollywood to include racial disparity. ​Both women revealed on social media how much they were offered for comedy specials, which was significantly less than what was paid by Netflix to Chris Rock, Amy Schumer​, and ​​Dave Chappelle​​​.

​On Friday, Mo’Nique took to Instagram to openly discuss how her offer for a comedy special on Netflix compared to other comedians, specifically those who are male or white. She called for a boycott of the streaming service. “I am asking that you stand with me and boycott Netflix for gender bias and color bias,” she said. “I was offered a $500,000 deal last week to do a comedy special. However, Amy Schumer was offered $11 million, Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle $20 million.”​

The video inspired Sykes to come forward with her own complaint about Netflix. On Twitter, Sykes thanked Mo’Nique for speaking out and said that she wasn’t even offered half of what Mo’Nique was. Sykes’s comedy special went to the Epix channel instead.

The gap between what women and men make in Hollywood has been a cornerstone of the conversation around gendered power imbalances since the #MeToo movement stormed the entertainment industry. Mark Wahlberg donated his salary for reshooting Ridley Scott’s All the Money in the World after it was discovered that he made $1.5 million while costar Michelle Williams was paid less than $1,000. But Mo’Nique and Sykes added an important dimension to the conversation by calling attention to how Netflix treats actors of color, particularly women, and how that reflects broader biases in the industry. Fans of the comedians on Twitter supported their efforts to open the dialogue to race as well as gender.

Mo’Nique uploaded another Instagram video​ on Sunday, the day of the SAG Awards, to comment on Sykes’s response and call for action. “How is that Wanda Sykes and Mo’Nique together, these two black women who have 50-plus years in the comedy game, be offered $750,000 between the both of us and Amy Schumer get $13 million?” She added, “Make that make sense.”

See the videos.