Matt Smith supports friend Claire Foy over Crown pay row
The star says he is pleased the pay dispute was resolved but more work needs to be done to end the gender pay gap.
Monday 23 April 2018 11:13, UK
Matt Smith has supported his co-star and "best friend" Claire Foy by saying they should have been paid equally for their roles in The Crown.
The actor, who played the Duke of Edinburgh in the Netflix drama opposite Foy's Queen Elizabeth II, said more needs to be done to create a level playing field.
He told The Hollywood Reporter: "Claire is one of my best friends, and I believe that we should be paid equally and fairly and there should be equality for all.
"I support her completely, and I'm pleased that it was resolved and they made amends for it because that what's needed to happen.
"Going forward, I think we should all bear in mind that we need to strive to make this better and a more even playing field for everyone involved - but not just in our industry, in all industries."
The duo played the royal couple for the first two series of the show but will be replaced by Olivia Colman and Tobias Menzies for the third series.
Last month producers revealed that Doctor Who star Smith earned more than Foy for his work on the show.
Foy told Entertainment Weekly it felt "very, very odd" to be at the centre of a global story about pay equality.
Her comments came after Left Bank Pictures said: "We want to apologise to both Claire Foy and to Matt Smith, brilliant actors and friends, who have found themselves at the centre of a media storm this week through no fault of their own.
"Claire and Matt are incredibly gifted actors who, along with the wider cast on The Crown, have worked tirelessly to bring our characters to life with compassion and integrity.
"As the producers of The Crown, we at Left Bank Pictures are responsible for budgets and salaries; the actors are not aware of who gets what, and cannot be held personally responsible for the pay of their colleagues.
"We understand and appreciate the conversation which is rightly being played out across society and we are absolutely united with the fight for fair pay, free of gender bias, and for a rebalancing of the industry's treatment of women, both those in front of the camera and for those behind the scenes."
Producer Suzanne Mackie told an audience in Jerusalem last month: "Going forward, no one gets paid more than the Queen."