Pay talks vulgar for Kate Winslet

Kate Winslet says she considers herself lucky. Photo / AP

Actress says she’s never faced sexism.

Complaining publicly about the Hollywood gender pay gap is "a bit vulgar", Kate Winslet says, adding she finds it "quite strange" to hear A-list stars such as Jennifer Lawrence talk openly about money.

Oscar-winning Winslet said she was "having such a problem" with a high-profile debate about women being paid less than their male co-stars, arguing it was "not a nice conversation to have publicly at all".

Last month Lawrence, one of the world's highest-profile actresses, published an essay about being paid less than the men around her. Other actresses have previously commented on gender equality issues, with Dame Helen Mirren and Meryl Streep criticising the paucity of roles for women of a certain age.

In an interview with BBC Newsbeat about her new film, Steve Jobs, Winslet said she was "perfectly capable of standing up for herself" when it came to gender equality and questioned why people felt the need to talk about money in public.

"I'm having such a problem with these conversations, because they keep coming up," she said. "And I understand why they are coming up but maybe it's a British thing: I don't like talking about money. It's a bit vulgar isn't it?" She added:

"It's not for me to comment on other people's comments, and I think it would be very dangerous for me to do that. I am a very lucky woman and I'm quite happy with how things are ticking along."

Leaked Sony emails earlier this year revealed that Lawrence had been paid significantly less for her role in American Hustle than her male co-stars Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale and Jeremy Renner. In her essay on the issue, she said she initially blamed herself for failing to negotiate hard over finances.

"I didn't want to seem 'difficult' or 'spoiled'. At the time, that seemed like a fine idea, until I saw the payroll on the internet and realised every man I was working with definitely didn't worry about being difficult or spoiled."

Actresses Emma Watson and Carey Mulligan showed their support. However, Winslet claimed she had not come across sexism in her line of work. "I haven't ever felt as though I've really had to stick up for myself just because I'm a woman."