Penelope Cruz received the same pay as Javier Bardem for ‘Everybody Knows’.
The Academy Award-winning actress stars alongside her real-life husband in the Asghar Farhadi-directed thriller, and Penelope – who plays a Spanish women who returns to her hometown near Madrid – has revealed she received the same fee for the movie as Javier.
Asked whether she was given pay parity with her husband, Penelope replied: "Actually, yes."
In the movie – which opened the Cannes Film Festival on Tuesday (08.05.18) – Penelope’s on-screen character and her family leave Buenos Aires in Argentina to return to Spain, but their trip is disturbed by a series of unexpected events.
Despite the intense nature of the role, Penelope revealed that she and Javier managed to separate their on-screen roles from their real-life relationship.
She told Variety: "We don’t take the characters home at the end of the day.
"We have similar ways of work. The fact that we know each other and trust each other helps."
Although she relished the experience of working with her husband, the 44-year-old actress admitted it’s not something she wants to do too often.
Penelope shared: "It’s not something we plan on doing every two years. That will be once in a while, if we feel it’s right. I don’t think it will be too often."
Meanwhile, Penelope also revealed she’s adopted a more philosophical approach to her work as she’s aged.
The Spanish star explained: "When I was in my 20s, I thought the more I would torture myself and the more I would stay in character for months, the better the result would be.
"I learned it’s not really related to that. I have a life and I have a job. That allows me to jump from reality to fiction."
Penelope Cruz received equal pay for Everybody Knows
