Benedict Cumberbatch Will Only Do New Projects if His Female Co-Stars Are Paid Equally

Benedict Cumberbatch is committing to making sure that women are paid equally in the entertainment industry and he vows to never do a project again if his female co-stars are not being paid the same as him.

“It’s about implementation,” the 41-year-old Avengers: Infinity War actor told Radio Times. “Equal pay and a place at the table are the central tenets of feminism. Look at your quotas. Ask what women are being paid, and say: ‘If she’s not paid the same as the men, I’m not doing it.’”

Some of the big examples of pay inequality recently include The Crown and All the Money in the World.

“I’m proud that [my friend and partner] Adam and I are the only men in our production company; our next project is a female story with a female lens about motherhood, in a time of environmental disaster,” Benedict added. “If it’s centered around my name, to get investors, then we can use that attention for a raft of female projects. Half the audience is female. And, in terms of diversity, Black Panther is now the third most successful film of all time.”