Gender Pay Gap in Hollywood: an Expressivist Analysis of Celebrity Claims

This article examines the gender pay gap in Hollywood as a paradigmatic case of inequality among the super-rich. While the issue has gained visibility through public interventions by actresses such as Patricia Arquette, Jennifer Lawrence, and Emma Watson, its moral significance is not immediately obvious, given that it concerns highly privileged individuals. Nevertheless, the case raises questions central to two ongoing philosophical debates: the normative status of extreme wealth and the role of celebrities in public moral discourse. Building on current work in expressivist theory, the article asks whether the equal pay claims of super-rich celebrities can be justified. The article reconstructs two possible versions of the Disrespect Argument—the Insider and Outsider Variants—and argues that neither proves adequate. The conclusion is that, despite their initial plausibility, these expressivist arguments fail to yield a normatively determinate basis for grounding Hollywood celebrities’ claims to pay equality.