Taraji P. Henson and Ellen Pompeo work on two of the biggest shows on network TV. The respective “Empire” and “Grey’s Anatomy” stars are also outspoken advocates for fair pay. Henson called out Hollywood’s racial and gender pay gap in her 2016 memoir, and both she and Pompeo have publicly discussed their fights to be compensated according to their worth.

Henson and Pompeo sat down together for Variety’s Actors on Actors series and, once again, were candid about show business’ gender pay gap — and how it hits women of color especially hard.

Speaking about her paycheck for 2005’s “Hustle & Flow” — she asked for half a million but didn’t get it — Henson emphasized that she has had to repeatedly prove to studios and execs that she’s “bankable.” “[Tyler Perry] was the first person who paid me $500,000,” the Oscar nominee revealed. “I was never in a position where I could not take a job; by the grace of God, they have all been really good characters. But it was never a situation where I was like, ‘I’m not going to do that.’ Now, I’m finally there,” she said.

When she first began on her show, Pompeo — who portrays Meredith Grey, i.e. the “Grey” in “Grey’s Anatomy — was being paid about half of what her co-star Patrick Dempsey was earning. “He had a television quote. I had never done TV,” Pompeo remarked. She didn’t find out about the pay discrepancy until Season 3 contract negotiations. The excuse for the disparity: “He’s done 13 pilots.” Not that any of them went to series.

Henson saw parallels between Pompeo’s experience and her own situation on “Empire.” Henson’s Cookie Lyon is one of the most popular characters on the series, and probably the best-known in terms of the cultural conversation. “When all the tweets were about Cookie, I said, ‘It’s time to renegotiate. Can everybody sit down at the table, please?'” Henson recalled. “I’d been in the game long enough to know the numbers game, and I knew Cookie had become iconic. You need her. So I need my money.”

As Pompeo noted, “It’s impossible to have this conversation without talking about race. It’s such a significant piece of pay parity.” Men are routinely paid more than women, and white women are routinely paid more than women of color. Plus, movies bankrolled or produced by white dudes have more financial wiggle room than those made by people of color.

“[Pay inequity is] not going to change until privilege reaches across the table and helps. Otherwise, we’re playing a rerun,” Henson said. “The only narrative that I wish I could change is my money. It’s almost like they want this incredible performance for a discount price.” She added,” The black movies — we don’t get big budgets. I have to wait until Scorsese or someone with a franchise film calls.”

And, of course, there’s a whole other level of pressure for actresses of color: the choice between being unemployed and taking a role that could be construed as stereotypical or offensive. “[Cookie] calls one son, who’s gay, the F-bomb, and she beats one son with a broom. This is something that has never been shown on national television — certainly not by a black woman,” Henson explained. “When you’re a person of color, you have to be careful about the roles you pick. You want to uplift the people.”

“I think that Caucasian actresses don’t understand the nuanced struggles that you have as a black woman, and the roles you choose — what you’re sidestepping, what you want to make sure gets out there,” Pompeo agreed. “It’s a whole different layer of difficulty that I certainly didn’t understand when I started my show.” She continued, “But when we’re young actresses you’re trying to get any role you can.”

Henson was last seen in mind-reading comedy “What Men Want” and biopic “The Best of Enemies.” She received an Oscar nomination for “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” and won a Golden Globe for “Empire.” The latter’s upcoming sixth season will be its last.

“Grey’s Anatomy” will run for at least another two seasons. Pompeo has directed two episodes of the long-running medical drama and received a Golden Globe nod for her performance. She produces the series and is a co-executive producer on its spinoff, “Station 19.”

You can read Henson and Pompeo’s full conversation over at Variety.