Demi Moore opens up about 1990s backlash she received over Striptease salary

Demi Moore has discussed the “shaming” she received over her record-breaking salary for the 1996 film Striptease.

The Ghost actor, 61, became the highest-paid female actor in the world when she landed a $12.5m (£9.38m) paycheck for the film, which follows former FBI office assistant Erin (played by Moore) who needs more money to regain custody of her daughter – so she starts working in a strip club.

When it emerged that Moore was receiving such a sizeable salary, the actor recalled being torn down by people because she was making money that rivalled the paychecks of her male colleagues in Hollywood.

“Well, with Striptease, it was as if I had betrayed women, and with GI Jane, it was as if I had betrayed men,” Moore told the New York Times podcast The Interview.

Moore said people’s immediate response to her becoming the highest-paid actress was to shame her because she was portraying an erotic dancer.

She explained: “But I think the interesting piece is that when I became the highest-paid actress – why is it that, at that moment, the choice was to bring me down? I don’t take this personally. I think anyone who had been in the position that was the first to get that kind of equality of pay would probably have taken a hit. But because I did a film that was dealing with the world of stripping and the body, I was extremely shamed.”

At the time of the film’s release, Moore was married to Die Hard star Bruce Willis, and was aware of the size of the salaries he was being paid – so she thought her Striptease earnings were fair.

“It wasn’t about comparing myself to him. Yes, I saw what he got paid,” Moore said. “It was really more about: ‘Why shouldn’t I? If I’m doing the same amount of work, why shouldn’t I?’ And it’s no different than when I did the cover for Vanity Fair pregnant. I didn’t understand why it was such a big deal, why women when they were pregnant needed to be hidden? Why is it that we have to deny that we had sex? That’s the fear, right, that if you show your belly, that means, oh, my gosh, you’ve had sex.”

Moore said in a recent interview with Variety that her Striptease salary was “powerful” in  Hollywood because it changed “the playing field for all women”.

In her new film, The Substance, Moore plays Elisabeth Sparkle, a 50-year-old once-famous fitness guru who turns to a mystery injection to make herself look younger – and become relevant again.

Speaking toThe Independent about the role, she said she walked away from filming with a newfound sense of liberation.

“I knew there were going to be shots that highlighted my flaws, but those allowed me to find acceptance and appreciation in myself,” she said. “It was about surrendering. I had to let go of any parts of me that value perfection.”