It's been about three months since Jennifer Lawrence wrote her essay "Why Do I Make Less Than My Co-Stars," calling out Hollywood for paying women less than men for movies. While, many actors including Carey Mulligan, Bradley Cooper, and Emma Watson praised the essay - comedian Chris Rock is reacting Lawrence's wage inequality essay in a different way.
In a profile for "Ghostbuster" star "Saturday Night Live" star Leslie Jones, the 50-year-old comedian commented on Lawrence's stance on the issue, stating that she would be paid even lower if she was a black woman.
"Black women have the hardest gig in show business," Rock told the New Yorker Magazine. "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."
Rock met Jones in the 1980s when they were both touring and doing standup comedy. They reconnected in 2012 after Rock saw Jones performing. Rock later helper Jones get a job as a writer for "Saturday Night Live" and last year she became an "SNL" regular cast member.
"I mentioned her to several managers and agents over the years. Everybody passed. Lorne [Michaels], because he's the best at what he does, is the one who saw it. I don't think he'd hired a cast member her age in a long time," Rock said.
Jones told the New Yorker, "Every black comedian in the country knew what I could do. But that doesn't mean everyone else is paying attention."
The "Hunger Games" star wrote the essay after learning that she had made less money than her male co-stars in "American Hustle" after the Sony hack.
"Jeremy Renner, Christian Bale and Bradley Cooper all fought and succeeded in negotiating powerful deals for themselves," the 25-year-old Oscar-winning actress wrote. "If anything, I'm sure they were commended for being fierce and tactical while I was busy worrying about coming across as a brat and not getting my fair share."
"When the Sony hack happened and I found out how much less I was being paid than the lucky people with d***s, I didn't get mad at Sony. I got mad at myself," she added. "I failed as a negotiator because I gave up early. I didn't want to keep fighting over millions of dollars that, frankly, due to two franchises, I don't need."
