Academy Award winning actress Octavia Spencer recently spoke at a panel at the Sundance Film Festival, where she revealed that Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James helped her earn equal pay on a Netflix series.
Spencer, who worked alongside LeBron on a biopic about Madam C.J. Walker (America's first black self-made millionaire), described how the four-time NBA MVP stepped in to ensure she received a fair deal compared to male cast members.
"I have to say, when I was negotiating my deal for ‘Madam C.J.,’ LeBron James had to intervene," Spencer said during the panel (H/T TMZ Sports). She added, "We need all our male counterparts to be in the fight with us."
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Last Fall, LeBron spoke out about the wage gap between men and women, specifically African American women, and used the backlash received by Serena Williams at last year' U.S. Open as an example.
He told Marisa Guthrie of the Hollywood Reporter (H/T Bleacher Report):
"What we all have to understand is what she is fighting for is bigger than just that match," he said. "She is fighting for equality—always having to win more, more, more, just to feel equal. Being an African American woman playing in a predominantly white sport, she's dealing with so much more. I have no idea what was going on in her head, but I feel that struggle."
