Los Angeles, Jan 13 (IANS): Oscar nominated and “Gladiator star” Djimon Hounsou revealed he is "struggling to make a living" despite his Hollywood success. He believes that he is "underpaid" by movie heads.

Hounsou, 60, started his career more than 30 years ago and received Academy Award nominations for his roles in 'In America' and 'Blood Diamond'.

Speaking on CNN’s 'African Voices Changemakers', he said: "I’m still struggling to make a living. I’ve been in the filmmaking business for over two decades with two Oscar nominations and many blockbuster films, and yet, I’m still struggling financially. I’m definitely underpaid."

The actor believes he missed out on the Oscar for 'Amistad ' in 1997 because he feels as if the Academy didn't think they need to "pay him any respect" despite his performance on screen, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

He said: "I was nominated for the Golden Globe, but they ignored me for the Oscars because they thought that I had just come off the boat and the streets.

"Even though I successully did that, they just didn’t feel like I was an actor to whom they should pay any respect. This conceptual idea of diversity still has a long way to go. Systemic racism won’t change like that anytime soon."

The actor previously claimed that he still has to "prove" to move executives why he deserves to be paid higher than what is often offered to him.

He told The Guardian: "I still have to prove why I need to get paid. They always come at me with a complete low ball: 'We only have this much for the role, but we love you so much and we really think you can bring so much.

"Viola Davis said it beautifully. She's won an Oscar, she's won an Emmy, she's won a Tony and she still can't get paid.”