Demi Moore's 13%-Rated Flick That Walked So That Anora Could Run Just Blew Up Max Top 5

2024 was the year of Demi Moore 's career revival. And although the actress lost out to Mikey Madison at the Oscars, her performance in the body horror film The Substance was the best in her filmography.

Throughout her career, Moore has challenged social prejudices, played provocative roles, and defended women's rights to self-determination, acting in explicit scenes while fighting against the exploitation of the female image in cinema.

One of the most striking examples of this is Striptease – now the fifth most-watched film on Max – which echoes Anora in its subject matter, and which failed at the box office, but achieved something more important.

What Is Striptease About?

Erin divorces her no-good husband, but the court gives her father custody because the woman is unemployed. Erin decides to get a job at a strip club to make some quick money and get custody of her child from her ex-husband.

There the woman makes new friends and finds a loyal admirer – Congressman David Dilbeck. On the eve of the next election, Erin comes up with a brilliant plan to kidnap Dilbeck.

Striptease Was One of the Biggest Flops of Demi Moore's Career

Striptease and Anora have a lot in common, which makes it all the more surprising how different the impact of these two movies was on their leading ladies. Mikey Madison won an Oscar, while Striptease almost ended Moore's career.

Andrew Bergman's film received six Golden Raspberry nominations and won five. The actress received a statuette together with Burt Reynolds – they were recognized as the worst screen couple.

Thanks to Demi Moore, Striptease Became the Industry's First Step Toward Equal Pay

But something else is more important: in 1996, Demi Moore became the highest paid actress, demanding $12.5 million for her role in Striptease.

Previously, only men had received such fees. At the time of filming, the actress was married to Bruce Willis and knew about her husband's salary. Inequality bothered her: Why do men and women get paid so differently for the same amount of work?

Demi Moore paved the way for future generations of actresses. After her, women became bolder in demanding high salaries.

In 1990, for example, Julia Roberts was paid only $300,000 for her role in Pretty Woman, while Richard Gere received a check for $15 million. But ten years later, Roberts was paid $20 million for her work in Erin Brockovich.