You Need To Read Michelle Williams' Response To Mark Wahlberg's #TimesUp Donation

The stars of the film All The Money In The World recently made headlines, when it was revealed that Mark Wahlberg received a considerable paycheck to perform reshoots, and Michelle Williams did not. The overwhelming response online caused Wahlberg to donate his entire salary to #TimesUp, and Michelle Williams' response to Mark Wahlberg's #TimesUp donation is keeping the focus on the organization's work.

On Saturday, Jan. 13, Williams issued the following statement to Deadline:

“Today isn’t about me. My fellow actresses stood by me and stood up for me, my activist friends taught me to use my voice, and the most powerful men in charge, they listened and they acted. If we truly envision an equal world, it takes equal effort and sacrifice. Today is one of the most indelible days of my life because of Mark Wahlberg, WME and a community of women and men who share in this accomplishment. Anthony Rapp, for all the shoulders you stood on, now we stand on yours.”

In the statement, Williams viewed Wahlberg's donation as a "shared accomplishment" between the actor, their agency, and "the community of men and women" speaking up against Hollywood's systemic sexual harassment, abuse, and more. She went on to mention actor Anthony Rapp by name, who was among the men to accuse former All The Money In The World star Kevin Spacey of sexual abuse and misconduct (For his part, Spacey claims that he has no memory of the events being alleged against him, but he apologized if he caused any harm.). When the allegations against Kevin Spacey emerged in late 2017, director Ridley Scott announced he would reshoot all of Spacey's scenes in All The Money In The World with actor Christopher Plummer.

Recently, it was reported that Williams received less than $1,000 for her work on the reshoots. Wahlberg, meanwhile, negotiated a paycheck of $1.5 million, without which he would not participate. Again, the reshoots were not scheduled in advance; Scott called for them over the Thanksgiving holiday to remove Spacey from their film. Here's what Williams told USA Today in November 2017:

I said I'd be wherever they needed me, whenever they needed me. And they could have my salary, they could have my holiday, whatever they wanted. Because I appreciated so much that they were making this massive effort.

Williams and Wahlberg are represented by the same agency (William Morris Endeavor), and the differences in the actors' paychecks and responses to reshoots with Plummer caused a stir online. As a result, Deadline reported that Wahlberg would be donating the entirety of the new paycheck to the #TimesUp foundation in Michelle Williams' name, with the agency that represents both of them contributing an additional $500,000.

On Saturday, Jan. 13, Wahlberg's issued the following statement to Deadline on his salary donation:

Over the last few days my reshoot fee for All The Money in the World has become an important topic of conversation. I 100% support the fight for fair pay and I’m donating the $1.5 million to the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund in Michelle Williams’ name.

In response, Williams' own statement acknowledged the significance of Wahlberg's donation, but insisted that the action was not a personal victory for her. Instead, she was grateful to see that "powerful men in charge" can learn to "listen and act," and underscored that this could not happen without actress and activist solidarity.

Their shared agency, WME, also issued a statement to Deadline on the importance of #TimesUp:

The current conversation is a reminder that those of us in a position of influence have a responsibility to challenge inequities, including the gender wage gap. In recognition of the pay discrepancy on All The Money In The World reshoots, WME is donating an additional $500,000 to the Time’s Up Legal Defense Fund in Michelle Williams’ name, following our $1 million pledge to the organization earlier this month. It’s crucial that this conversation continues within our community and we are committed to being part of the solution.

One of the #TimesUp movement's goals is to provide gender parity in Hollywood and beyond; this development is a step in the right direction.