Grey’s Anatomy star Ellen Pompeo has opened up about the unexpected backlash she received after news of her $20 million salary was made public in 2018.
The TV star, 55, revealed all during her appearance on Tuesday’s Call Her Daddy episode, noting how hard she had to work for the pay raise which saw her become one of the highest paid actresses on TV.
Pompeo famously played Dr. Meredith Grey – the central protagonist of the show – for 19 seasons starting in 2005, before leaving the series as a regular in 2023.
In 2018, she renegotiated her salary after learning she was earning less than her male co-star at the time, Patrick Dempsey.
Looking back at the moment when the news broke and the lack of congratulations she received from her peers, the actress recalled how her manager ‘said something to me that literally hit me like a brick.’
‘He said, “Are you ready to be unpopular? I just don’t want you to think that everyone is going to go in and cheer for you and clap for you because there are going to be a lot of people that aren’t happy for you,”‘ Pompeo said.
Pompeo admitted that the thought hadn’t occurred to her at the time, and that she was thankful for the warning because it turned out to be true.
She added: ‘Generally, it is hard for people to celebrate other people if they have something the resembles something that they want.’
When host Alex Cooper pointed out that men never face the same scrutiny, Pompeo agreed: ‘It’s a lot, and it’s patriarchy and it’s misogyny…
‘Sports players are celebrated for their contracts. Not saying they’re not worth it, but I mean, it’s OK for them to celebrate it.’
Pompeo noted that she didn’t ever want something ‘I don’t deserve… that I haven’t worked for.’
The Daredevil star highlighted the fact she had taken time to research ‘exactly how much’ ABC was making profit from Grey’s.
She then noted: ‘It’s my face, it’s my voice. I’ve done so much work promoting the show all over the world for the past 20 years.
‘I am the Disney princess of that franchise, so I have the data to back up. I know the show has generated this much money; I definitely deserve a percentage of that.’
The actress then spoke about the reality of returning to set after the news was out in the world.
‘I was ready for it because of his comment, but what I saw was the people who didn’t say anything,’ she recalled.
‘I got a lot of emails that day when that story came out from amazing people, congratulating me.’
The Old School star continued: ‘Then the ones who are quiet you know who don’t say anything, and you see it, and you’re like. “OK.” I don’t know what to say, don’t hate the player, hate the game.’
It was revealed in 2018 that Pompeo had negotiated a salary of as much as $20 million per year, including signing bonus, producing fees, ownership in the show and other extras.’
She also earns an undisclosed sum for producing the Grey’s spinoff, Station 19.
Pompeo’s latest role is in Hulu’s new limited series, Good American Family, which is set to come out March 19.
She will portray Kristine Barnett, the adopted mother of Natalia Grace, a Ukrainian adoptee accused of faking her age.