Netflix has settled its pay discrimination lawsuit with Mo’Nique, concluding legal action the actress and comedian filed against the streamer in 2019 over what was alleged to be a “lowball” offer for a one-hour comedy special, according to court documents obtained by TheWrap.
Terms of the settlement were not disclosed in the Tuesday filing of the Los Angeles U.S. District Court.
Mo’Nique’s complaint accused Netflix of gender and race discrimination, saying that the company had given her a “low-ball” and “discriminatory” offer of $500,000 as a “talent fee” for a one-hour stand-up special, while other comedians were offered millions of dollars per special.
Netflix, which did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday, said at the time of the lawsuit’s filing that they intended to fight it in court.
“We care deeply about inclusion, equity, and diversity and take any accusations of discrimination very seriously. We believe our opening offer to Mo’Nique was fair — which is why we will be fighting this lawsuit,” a spokesperson told TheWrap in 2019.
Mo’Nique’s original lawsuit listed several comedians and their Netflix salaries, suggesting that she was offered less because she’s a Black woman.
“Netflix reportedly offered or paid [Chris] Rock, [Dave] Chapelle [sic], [Ellen] Degeneris [sic], and [Ricky] Gervais forty (40) times more per show than it offered Mo’Nique, and it offered [Amy] Schumer twenty-six (26) times more per show than Mo’Nique. In short, Netflix’s offer to Mo’Nique perpetuates the drastic wage gap forced upon Black women in the America’s workforce.”
Pamela Chelin contributed to this report …