In Hollywood, salaries are usually negotiated quietly and protected fiercely. Every so often, though, a star decides that a co-star's paycheck matters as much as their own. Some cut their fees so a film could afford a legend. Others tied their contracts to a colleague's, or took less money so a castmate could earn more. Several of these stories only came out years later, and usually it was the other person who told them. Here are some of the most generous paycheck decisions in recent movie and TV history, all drawn from published reporting.
Chadwick Boseman: Chadwick Boseman gave part of his salary to Sienna Miller
Chadwick Boseman starred in the police thriller 21 Bridges and was also one of its producers. Filming began in September 2018, and the movie opened in November 2019. In 2020, his co-star Sienna Miller told Empire magazine that she had asked for a fee the studio would not meet. She said Boseman had pushed for her to take the role of detective Frankie Burns. "Chadwick ended up donating some of his salary to get me to the number that I had asked for," she said, adding, "He said that that was what I deserved to be paid." Miller called it the most astounding thing she had experienced in her career.
Keanu Reeves: Keanu Reeves cut his own fee to help bring Al Pacino aboard
For the 1997 thriller The Devil's Advocate, Keanu Reeves wanted to work with Al Pacino, but the film's budget could not comfortably cover both stars' fees. Reeves had chosen the project over an offer of $11 million for Speed 2: Cruise Control. Film Stories, citing his interview with Total Film, reports that he offered to reduce his own pay by a couple of million dollars, and Pacino signed on. Asked about it at a 2019 press event, Reeves said he would rather people didn't know and called it a private transaction. Film Stories also reports that he lowered his price again for The Replacements (2000) so producers could afford Gene Hackman.
Jessica Chastain: Jessica Chastain tied her pay to Octavia Spencer's on a new comedy
When Jessica Chastain and Octavia Spencer agreed to make a holiday comedy together, Spencer explained to her that women of color are often paid far less than white actresses. Speaking on a Women Breaking Barriers panel at the 2018 Sundance Film Festival, Spencer said Chastain proposed that they be "favored nations," a deal that ties their pay together. Spencer said that as a result she would earn five times what she had asked for, and she later wrote on Twitter that it was "bc Jessica stood with me." Chastain said she realized she could tie Spencer's deal to hers to raise her quote, and she encouraged male stars to do the same for their female co-stars.
Jim Parsons: Jim Parsons and Big Bang Theory castmates offered pay cuts for co-stars
In March 2017, as The Big Bang Theory was heading toward renewal, Variety reported that Jim Parsons and fellow original stars Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar would each take $100,000 less per episode. CBS News in Miami, citing Variety's report, said each of them had been earning about $1 million per episode. The money freed up was meant to raise the pay of co-stars Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch, who joined in season three and were reportedly earning about $200,000 per episode. Under the plan, their salaries would have risen to about $450,000 per episode. The show went on to air through its 12th season.
Mark Wahlberg: Mark Wahlberg gave his reshoot fee to charity in Michelle Williams's name
In 2017, All the Money in the World needed ten days of reshoots after Christopher Plummer replaced Kevin Spacey. USA Today then reported that Mark Wahlberg had been paid $1.5 million for the reshoots, while co-star Michelle Williams received less than $1,000, and the gap drew public criticism. On January 13, 2018, Wahlberg announced that he would donate his full $1.5 million fee to the Time's Up Legal Defense Fund in Williams's name. "I 100% support the fight for fair pay," he said. The talent agency WME, which represents both actors, added a $500,000 donation of its own. In her statement, Williams said, "Today isn't about me."
Sources
- https://www.scrippsnews.com/entertainment/celebrity/chadwick-boseman-donated-portion-of-salary-to-sienna-miller
- https://blackenterprise.com/sienna-miller-reveals-chadwick-boseman-reduced-his-salary-from-21-bridges-to-increase-hers/
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/21_Bridges
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chadwick_Boseman_(35411712094)_(cropped_2).jpg
- https://filmstories.co.uk/features/the-times-when-keanu-reeves-cut-his-salary-to-help-get-a-film-made/
- https://faroutmagazine.co.uk/al-pacino-keanu-reeves-salary-slashed/
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Keanu_Reeves_at_TIFF_2025_02_(centre_cropped).jpg
- https://www.etonline.com/heres-how-jessica-chastain-helped-octavia-spencer-get-equal-pay-95063
- https://www.wmagazine.com/story/jessica-chastain-octavia-spencer-salary
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jessica_Chastain-64424_(cropped).jpg
- https://www.cbsnews.com/miami/news/big-bang-theory-cast-takes-pay-cut-to-give-co-stars-a-raise/
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Jim_Parsons_2016.jpg
- https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/after-outcry-mark-wahlberg-donates-1-5-million-film-fee-n837526
- https://www.cbsnews.com/amp/news/mark-wahlberg-times-up-donates-all-the-money-in-the-world-fee
- https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mark_Wahlberg_May_2014_(cropped).jpg
