‘Shameless’ Star Emmy Rossum Talks About Why She Fought For Equal Pay

Shameless stars Emmy Rossum and William H. Macy appeared at the Vulture Festival on May 21, 2017, to talk about Shameless. Writer and producer, Nancy Pimental was also there. One of the topics that came up in their panel discussion was Emmy Rossum’s fight for equal pay on the Shameless series last year.

Emmy Rossum was asked about what motived her to fight for equal pay.

Emmy explained that when the show first started, it was obvious that William H. Macy (she calls him Bill) was the main reason that Showtime wanted to produce Shameless. He is a big name, and he was a big part of why Shameless came to be. Emmy Rossum said that she was kind of the “last piece of the puzzle.” She admits that she hadn’t done television in the past and she was not very well known at the time. Macy had already won an Oscar, so it made sense that in the first few seasons he would be paid more than Rossum.

As time went on, Emmy Rossum says that “the leadership role started to feel somewhat shared.” Both Rossum and Macy were directing episodes, and they both played a big role on Shameless.

Emmy joked about how directing William H. Macy was one of the “scariest things ever” and mentioned how she would have to give him a note and it scared her.

Emmy Rossum went on to say that she loved the show and everyone involved in Shameless. There was no doubt that she wanted to keep doing it but she wanted it to feel right. That’s where the equal pay issue came into play.

Fans of Shameless may remember that when Rossum was fighting to get equal pay, William H. Macy was very supportive of her. In December of 2016, Macy took the time to talk to TMZ about Rossum’s demand for equal pay. When he was asked what he thought of Emmy Rossum demanding equal pay, he gave a brief history of the Equal Rights Amendment and then said, “It’s about f****** time.” He went on to say that Rossum works as hard as he does and she deserves it. Always having a line that stands out, Macy added, “The only thing I’ve got over Emmy Rossum is I’m better looking.”

Emmy Rossum told Vulture that one of the nicest things about the whole ordeal was that she felt that Macy really supported her and it made her feel good.

William H. Macy echoed his previous sentiments and told Vulture that, “It’s a no brainer. It’s something the country’s gotta fix. You get there earlier, you work harder than anyone else. It’s just…just a silly discussion really.”

Emmy Rossum did get her pay demands met obviously since they are getting ready to do Season 8 of Shameless. There’s no set date for when Season 8 will start but when a fan on Twitter asked if Emmy Rossum would be directing this season she said, “So I’ve heard, yes…”

The Vulture Festival was huge this year and had some truly great panels for entertainment fans to enjoy. As Vulture said, “And this year, we’ve put together a bigger lineup than ever before. Like really big! Sarah Jessica Parker big. Aziz Ansari big. Stephen Colbert big. Black Mirror, Shameless, 2 Dope Queens big. And that’s just the tip of the festival iceberg.”

From May 20 to May 21, 2017, Vulture hosted a massive collection of discussions with actors and producers and directors from some of the best shows on television. The Vulture Festival also included food, a pop-up shop, and the Vulture Lounge at Highline Stages where people could enjoy a drink, live dancing, and a DJ.

[Featured Image by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images]