There has always been a discussion about the issue of pay between genders in the Korean entertainment industry.
Pay Discrepancies Between Male And Female Actors Making Headlines In Light Of Kim Soo Hyun’s Massive Salary
A recent article that spoke about the costs of K-Dramas compared to the profits spoke about the cost reductions happening within the industry, sparking fury.
In particular, it spoke about where the costs are being cut or maintained when it comes to the stars themselves. While the fees for top stars tend to be consistent, it shared the drop for normal actors, showing a stark difference between male and female stars. No specific stars or projects were mentioned.
Since last year, production companies and broadcasters have been making serious efforts to restructure their business models. While top-tier A-list actors, whose overseas sales are virtually guaranteed, still command appearance fees of ₩300 million KRW (about $ 208,000 USD) to ₩500 million KRW (about $ 347,000 USD) per episode, actors ranked a tier below are struggling, lamenting that there are no roles available for them. This is largely due to a significant decline in the number of drama productions, coupled with a growing sentiment that it is better to cast fresh new actors and reduce production costs.
As efforts to cap per-episode production budgets at around ₩700 million KRW (about $ 486,000 USD) to ₩800 million KRW (about $ 555,000 USD) gain momentum, attempts to lower actors’ fees continue, with male actors being capped at ₩100 million KRW (about $ 69,400 USD) per episode and female actors at less than ₩30.0 million KRW (about $ 20,800 USD).
— Munhwa
When the figures were shared online, netizens were in shock at the discrimination in the industry, sharing their anger at the huge wage difference between men and women when it comes to acting jobs.
- Isn’t this gender discrimination???
- The pay gap between male and female actors is too extreme.
- So, in the end, male actors sell better.
- Crazy.
This is pure discrimination—how can they differentiate pay based solely on gender? - It’s not about career, recognition, or ability—this is just gender discrimination.
The topic of gender continues to be a hot topic in all areas of Korean society.
Source: Munhwa and theqoo
