Amy Schumer: "I don't believe I deserve equal pay" to Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle
Amy Schumer is shutting down rumors that she asked for equal pay to Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle, saying that while she did ask for more money for her Netflix comedy special, she did not ask for an amount equal to Rock and Chappelle's compensation.
A Variety story reported that Schumer asked Netflix for more pay for her comedy special after learning about the near-double compensation Rock and Chappelle received. Some readers assumed from the report that it meant Schumer asked for equal pay to Rock and Chappelle, and social media users hit back with tweets like, "Amy Schumer pretending she's in the same league as Chris Rock and Dave Chappelle is the funniest she'll ever be" and "Why is Amy Schumer comparing herself to Chris Rock & Dave Chappelle? She's not on their level."
Schumer posted a nearly nude photo of herself clutching a plush hot dog and a real dog along with a statement on Instagram on Wednesday.
She wrote, "Thanks for chiming in on what you feel I deserve to be paid. I believe women deserve equal pay. However I don't believe I deserve equal pay to Chris and Dave. They are legends and 2 of the greatest comics of all time ... I didn't ask for the same as my friends. I did ask for more than the initial offer. I will continue to work my a** off and be the best performer I can be. The reports of me 'demanding' or 'insisting' on equal pay to them aren't a true."
She also pointed out that though she does not necessarily have the same clout as the male comics, she has found great success in the past few years: "I would like to say that I have been selling out arenas these last couple years. Something a female comic has never done. That's a big deal to me, especially because I know I do my best every night on stage for the audience and they have a good time."
Rock once criticized Jennifer Lawrence for slamming the Hollywood pay gap. He said in 2015, "Black women have the hardest gig in show business. You hear Jennifer Lawrence complaining about getting paid less because she's a woman -- if she was black, she'd really have something to complain about."
