World's Highest-Paid Actor Who Earned A Record-Breaking $156 Million
Fans are always curious about the turnover of their favourite celebrities. And entertainment is one of the highest-paying industries in the world. As the actors were paid well enough for their excellent performance at the box office, there is always a curiosity among the film enthusiasts to know who is the highest-paid actor in the world. If you are curious to know the answer, read this report to get surprised.
Six decades ago, actors in Hollywood were earning million-dollar paychecks. Stars like Richard Burton, Marlon Brando, and Elizabeth Taylor were among the first to charge the amount for a single film. But these records were shattered in less than two generations. The milestone is now heightened over a hundred times more. This is the story of the actor who earned a $156 million pay cheque for a single production.
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It’s none other than the internet’s most loved, Keanu Reeves, who broke the bank and stormed the world cinema with the success of the film, nope not John Wick, but The Matrix in the late 90s. The film, which stunned the world with its tremendous collection of $463,517,383 worldwide during its theatrical run, elevated Keanu Reeves’ worth to the top of the charts, becoming the most demanded actor of the era.
Warner Bros immediately signed him for the joint production of the two sequels—Reloaded and Revolutions. For the two films (shot and produced simultaneously), Keanu received an upfront salary of $30 million, along with a share in profits and a residual income promise. The Matrix: Reloaded and Revolutions were released in 2003 and had a combined box office haul of $1.2 billion. The two films have streamed on OTT and aired on TV multiple times. All this has taken Keanu’s earnings from the two to a staggering $156 million, the highest ever for any actor in a single production.
The fact that the Matrix franchise was released as two films helped the makers earn a tremendous collection at the box office, paving the way for Keanu to rise to be the highest-paid actor in history.
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Until then, the record was the $94 million Alec Guinness earned for Star Wars, and even that included multiple re-releases. The $156 million mark is so high that no actor has come close in the 21 years since. For instance, Tom Cruise’s highest salary ever is $100 million. Back home, Shah Rukh Khan’s pay cheque for Jawan was even lower at $40 million.
However, the record for a single film belongs to Bruce Willis, Tom Cruise, and Will Smith, all of whom have earned $100 million for one film. Bruce Willis did this for The Sixth Sense, Will Smith for Men In Black 3, and Tom Cruise for three films—Mission Impossible 2, War of the Worlds, and Top Gun: Maverick.
