Sharon Stone says she made $13.5million less than Basic Instinct co-star Michael Douglas

Sharon Stone has claimed there was a huge pay difference between herself and her Basic Instinct co-star Michael Douglas.

The iconic 1992 erotic thriller, which was directed by Paul Verhoeven, ended up becoming a huge box office hit and raked in $352.9 million.

While both Stone, 65, and Douglas, 78, played the main characters in the film, the Catwoman star says that she was paid $13.5 million less.

At the time the film was made, Douglas already had a huge repertoire of hits to his name, including Fatal Attraction, Wall Street and Romancing the Stone.

Now Stone has now opened up about the pay gap when looking back on her decade-spanning career.

Speaking at the New York Women In Film & Television's 43rd annual Muse Awards lunch yesterday (28 March), she said: "Michael Douglas made $14 million. Now, I was new. I was new and he was a very big star."

However, Stone only took home $500,000 for her leading role.

Before playing Catherine in Basic Instinct, she'd previously appeared in Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol, Total Recall to name a few.

After a string of roles from 1980, Stone’s role in Basic Instinct would be her first to get widespread acclaim and attention.

"We should think a lot more about what women can do," the Casino star went on to say.

She then shared moments from her early career in Hollywood, telling the audience just how different things were in 1990s, especially as a female actor.

"When I would go to the set there would be 300 men, and my hair and makeup and dressers were men, when I was doing sex scenes. It was all men and me.

"And sometimes," she continued, "I could ask the wardrobe supervisor, who may be a woman, if she wouldn’t mind staying on set while I did that."

Basic Instinct was particularly very well known for Stone’s famous leg-crossing scene which left audiences in shock when catching a glimpse of her private parts.

She added: "Well, things have changed, and there are women in film now, and I am really grateful."

Basic Instinct is a wild tale about a crime novelist Catherine Tramell, who is linked to the brutal death of her rock star boyfriend.

Homicide detective Nick Curran (Michael Douglas) investigates Catherine, who in turn, seduces him and they embark on an intense affair.

As a result, the murder case becomes increasingly complicated as you can probably imagine.