Amy Schumer Demanded (and got) More Money from Netflix After Learning of Rock/Chappelle Deals

at
Share This Post

In the past couple years, Netflix has dished out some huge money in order to secure some of the world’s best comedians on their platform. Louis C.K., Bill Burr, Ali Wong, Jerry Seinfeld, Dave Chappelle, Trevor Noah, Chris Rock; The list of comics who have had ungodly amounts of money thrown at them to secure specials for the streamer grows all the time. And yet, the question of pay disparity is one that’s fresh in the mind of even these high-level acts.

According to a new story from Variety regarding pay disparity for women and minorities in Hollywood, Amy Schumer and her team had to return to the negotiation table last year after they found out just how much Chappelle and Rock were making on their deals with Netflix; $60 million for three specials and $40 million for two specials, respectively. Schumer, on the other hand, was offered “only” $11 million for her one-off special, The Leather Special. Netflix apparently gave in to Schumer’s demands, offering her “significantly more compensation,” though the exact number is unknown.

The argument can certainly be made that Rock and Chappelle’s bigger contracts are due to their being more tenured comics who, before signing these contracts, hadn’t put out a special in years (therefore increasing demand for them), and didn’t plan to put specials out- but nonetheless, this is just one of many entries into the never-ending dispute around equal pay in show business and beyond.

Read more comedy news.

The following two tabs change content below.

Bill Tressler

Bill is a writer and comedy enthusiast from New York. An avid gamer and podcast fan, he strives to always toe the line between charming irreverence and grating honesty.
Bill Tressler
Bill Tressler
Bill is a writer and comedy enthusiast from New York. An avid gamer and podcast fan, he strives to always toe the line between charming irreverence and grating honesty.