Arden Cho Turned Down 'Teen Wolf' Movie Over Huge Racial Pay Gap

Back in February, Paramount+ announced it was reviving the popular MTV series as a sequel film that would see most of the lead actors reprising their original roles, minus Dylan O'Brian and Cho. And while it's still unclear why O'Brian decided to not return, Deadlinereported that Cho — the only woman of color in the core cast — had turned down the film after being offered half the per-episode salary of the three other female leads, all of whom are white.

That said, the report was just a rumor until earlier this week after The Cut published an interview with Cho, who confirmed the huge racial pay gap and talked about how it impacted her decision to ultimately turn down the movie.

“I think I was actually offered even less," she revealed, before saying she "probably would've never shared" what happened if someone hadn't leaked the information. However, Cho went on to say she wanted her decision to change the way female actresses and performers of color are usually paid substantially less than their white male co-stars.

“I wasn’t saying ‘no’ necessarily for me or because I was angry,” she explained. “I was saying ‘no’ because I hope that there will be more equality in the future.”

After all, the star said she could "off the top of my head think of over 10 Asian-American actors I know who were paid significantly less than their counterparts,” though she acknowledged that "sometimes you don’t have a choice to say ‘no.’"

Cho added, “Sometimes you just need it. You’ve got bills to pay.”

Not only that, but Cho also talked about playing kitsune Kira Yukimura — the love interest of Tyler Posey's character — for three out of the show's six seasons. But when Kira was written out of the series during season five, Cho said she was "in shock" over the decision and felt like "there wasn't room for Kira," despite her being a huge step forward for Asian American representation at the time.

Paramount+ has yet to respond. In the meantime, you can read Cho's entire interview here.

Photo via Getty / Steve Granitz / WireImage