The salary disparity for the queen and her consort in 'The Crown'
The wage gap also exists in television series. Discrimination reaches the very kingship in fiction. In the case that concerns us, the British. The actress Claire Foy, who captivated critics and fans alike with her portrayal of Queen Elizabeth II in the Netflix series The Crown, was paid less than her co-star Matt Smith, who played the queen's husband, as recognized by producers at the INTV Conference in Jerusalem.
Created by Peter Morgan, The Crown is a historical drama about the life of Elizabeth II of England. During the first two installments, the award-winning Foy gave life to the young queen while Smith got into the skin of her husband, Prince Philip.
Smith came to Netflix as an established actor in the United Kingdom, due to his portrayal of the protagonist of one of the most important British series, Doctor Who of the BBC, from 2010 to 2013. The producers relied on that to fix the salaries, they explained at the conference.
Despite her role in 2015 at Wolf Hall, the BBC's Golden Globe miniseries, Foy was relatively unknown when she became part of The Crown's cast. However, in the first two seasons of the series, which focused on her character's realm, Foy became the breakout star and won the Golden Globe for best actress for the first season, as well as a Globe Globe nomination in the same category for the second season. She was also nominated for an Emmy as best drama actress for the first season. Smith, 35, was not nominated for an Emmy or a Golden Globe for his role as Prince Philip.
The producers said that in the next seasons of the drama series the difference will be rectified. "From now on, nobody will have a better salary than the queen," said Suzanne Mackie, creative director of Left Bank Pictures, the show's producer.
However, that will not benefit much Foy, as the producers made a bold decision regarding the cast. Practically all the roles will be interpreted by different actors for the third season, since the period covered by the series goes from the 1940s and 1950s to 1960s and 1970s, and they want the performers to seem naturally older. Olivia Colman will play the queen.
It has not been revealed how much Smith won for The Crown but Foy was paid $ 40,000 per episode, according to the trade magazine Variety, while the budget of the series exceeds $ 7 million per episode.