Christy Carlson Romano claims she was 'paid half' of Shia LaBeouf's salary on Even Stevens

Christy Carlson Romano has claimed she was "paid half" of Shia LaBeouf's salary on the Disney Channel show Even Stevens.

The actress is currently promoting her new memoir, Once Upon a Trainwreck: The Fall and Rise of a Child Star.

Taking to Instagram recently, Christy posted a throwback photo of herself and Shia at around the time they were making the comedy series, in which they played siblings. The show ran for three seasons from 2000 until 2003.

"I was a kid and the female lead on Even Stevens. I was paid half of what Shia was paid; we were co-leads and had the same screen time," she wrote in the caption. "While writing my memoir, I dug through thousands of old photos and letters and found this."

In addition, the Kim Possible star uploaded copies of a letter that her mother Sharon had written to her agent at the time requesting "equal pay" and admitting "we were deep in debt".

"By then, my paycheck was keeping us afloat," the 42-year-old continued. "My mom was fighting for me, and she was also fighting for a household that depended on a teenage girl. It took me years to understand I could love her for advocating for me and still wish I had gotten to just be a kid."

Elsewhere in the post, Christy insisted Shia "earned every dollar" he made on Even Stevens.

Accordingly, she emphasised that her memoir is not about the celebrities she encountered while navigating a career in Hollywood.

"They were part of my story. They were never the story. The story is a girl who grew up too fast, and a business that decided she was worth half. If you grew up taking care of the people who were supposed to take care of you, I wrote this book for you," she declared.

Once Upon a Trainwreck is now available to purchase.