I'll turn down a role if my female co-star isn't paid the same: Benedict Cumberbatch

Hollywood star Benedict Cumberbatch has said he will not say yes to a film if the makers are not offering equal pay to his female co-stars.

"Equal pay and a place at the table are the central tenets of feminism," Cumberbatch told Radio Times magazine.

"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.'"

The 41-year-old British actor also said he will be using his position in the industry, and his new production company, SunnyMarch, to support more female-focused dramas.

"I'm proud that (partner) Adam (Ackland) 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.

 

"If it's centred around my name, to get investors, then we can use that attention for a raft of female projects. Half the audience is female!" he said.