Child actors are being underpaid and undervalued, a group of agents has said – with a production of Charles Dickens’s Oliver singled out as one of the worst offenders.
The Agents of Young Performers Association (AYPA) has criticised the industry union, Equity, for failing to ‘improve pay and working conditions for young performers’.
Their comments followed a statement from Bectu, the broadcasting union, that argued the arts cannot be the ‘preserve of the elite’.
AYPA claimed that the stance was hypocritical given a perceived lack of progress towards improving the opportunities for actors from disadvantaged backgrounds.
An unnamed production of Oliver! was deemed to be one of the least progressive with regard to pay for young actors, according to entertainment website Deadline.
It said: ‘The irony is hard to ignore: a story centred on the exploitation and mistreatment of children is being revived under contractual terms that mirror the very issues it portrays.
‘The uncomfortable truth is that young performers are simply not a priority for Equity.’
AYPA has said that without proper financial recognition, youngsters will be put off trying to emulate the success of stars such as Owen Cooper in Adolescence.
But even the amount that the 15-year-old earned for the award-winning show is not thought to be life-changing.
It is understood Owen was paid less than £40,000 for his break-out role in the four-part mini-series.
The teenager and his parents – carer mother Noreen, 52, and dad Andy, 45, who works in IT – still live in the £135,000 terraced house which has been their home for the past 20 years, with no outward sign of a change in the family’s fortunes.
AYPA has also sought to highlight the difference in pay between theatre shows in the UK and the amount offered by those commissioned by US streamers.
The group discovered that only two West End productions were paying child actors a weekly fee.
This was in sharp contrast to adult actors who still receive a set wage even if they are not called to every rehearsal on a given week.
An Equity spokesperson said that its main priority is child protection, not economic precarity.
They said, according to The Times: ‘Equity works to improve the pay and working conditions for young performers through our collective agreements and in providing specific advice and support.’
The union maintained that it has a ‘strong record’ breaking down barriers that prevent young people from disadvantaged backgrounds getting into drama.
The Daily Mail has contacted Equity for further comment.
