Arden Cho Turned Down Teen Wolf Role Because She Was Offered Less Than Her White Co-Stars

Former Teen Wolf star Arden Cho is speaking out about equitable pay in Hollywood. In an interview with The Cut published Monday, Cho revealed she declined to reprise her role in the upcoming Teen Wolf movie after she was offered far less than her co-stars.

News of the film was announced in February, though Cho, Dylan O'Brien, and Tyler Hoechlin said they will not return to reprise their roles from the MTV series. At the time, Deadline reported that Cho, the only woman of color in the cast, turned down the film because she was offered half the salary of the other three women in the film.

"I think I was actually offered even less," Cho told the The Cut. The leaked information likely came from someone not on her team, as Cho explained, "I probably would've never shared it."

"I could probably, off the top of my head, think of over ten Asian American actors I know who were paid significantly less than their counterparts," Cho said. "Sometimes you don't have a choice to say 'no.' Sometimes you just need it. You’ve got bills to pay."

However, Cho insisted she didn't turn down the role because she was angry. "I was saying 'no' because I hope that there will be more equality in the future," said the actor.

After Deadline reported that Cho was paid significantly less than her co-stars, no other Teen Wolf actors spoke out or expressed their support, The Cut reports. However, O'Brien did like a tweet supporting Cho, who said, "He's always been very, very supportive."

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Deena ElGenaidi's writing has been featured in Nylon, MTV News, Insider, The AV Club, and more. You can follow her on Twitter @deenaelg.