Young actresses like Jennifer Lawrence and Kristen Stewart are so successful they are beginning to reverse some of the outrageous discrepancy in pay between men and women in Hollywood says Natalie Portman.

Speaking to Marie Claire about the inequality that actresses still face, the Oscar-winning actress says, “There is an outrageous discrepancy between men and women in Hollywood.

“Titanic is a huge hit and Leonardo DiCaprio immediately goes to $20m (£12.6m) per movie and Kate Winslet doesn't.

“But that feels totally like it’s changing. 

“Young women like Jennifer Lawrence and Kristen Stewart – they’re the stars now. I don’t even know who the guys are who are their age.”

According to Forbes both are among the highest earning celebrities with J-Law making around £32 million aged just 24 while Kirsten, now 25, earning £24 million by the age of 22. 

Portman also admits that she is glad that she grew up without social media and escaped having her life documented online.

In a new interview for the September issue of the magazine, she explains: “I was in that lucky window: there was no Twitter, Facebook or Instagram. I went out and got drunk with my friends and no one knew.”

A Hollywood veteran at the age of 34, and now turning her talents to directing the film version of Amos Oz's novel A Tale of Love and Darkness, Portman says it was time for her to try something new.

“I don't get panicky, I know the waves – sometimes it's quiet, sometimes it's wild,” she says.

“I feel like I've done so much, it allows me to try new things, like directing.

“I can follow my own curiosity. I've been doing this long enough to see that my path is my own. I'm not in a race with anyone.”

A few weeks ago Portman told graduating Harvard students to use their inexperience to their advantage, admitting she only accepted her Oscar winning part in Black Swan because she didn't know her own limitations.