Taraji P. Henson topped the headlines at the end of 2o23 when she spoke out about the pay discrepancy in Hollywood and how she almost quit acting because of it. The conversation led to many in the industry supporting Henson — and more are still coming out to back her.
The latest person to do so is Set It Off star Jada Pinkett Smith. In a recent interview on NPR’s “It’s Been a Minute” podcast, Smith credited Henson for speaking out about the pay disparities.
“My heart broke for Taraji, and I was also happy [to see] how courageous she was to speak about it in the way that she did,” Smith said. “One of the things with Taraji is that she is the breadwinner of her family. Her pressures would be different than mine. I have to put that out front because if it’s time to walk away, that’s not always the solution. Because what people don’t understand [about] us as Black entertainers [is] we carry a lot of people with us.”
Smith then mentioned how being with Will Smith may have affected how she’s paid, and how she moved to production to avoid that kind of treatment.
“People would literally say, ‘Well, you don’t need it. You’re married to Will [Smith].’ It’s not to say that I won’t get in front of the camera, but what it takes for me to get in front of the camera [is] more,” Smith said. “Just in regards to the kind of roles that I want to play or that interest me. And I’m thinking about directing.”
In December 2023, Henson sat down in an interview with Gayle King and said she was tired of taking roles that didn’t pay her enough.
“I’m just tired of working so hard, being gracious at what I do, getting paid a fraction of the cost,” Henson said. “I’m tired of hearing my sisters say the same thing over and over. You get tired.”
