Cliff Notes – Superman star earned $1,250,000 less than highest paid member of cast
- David Corenswet, the new Superman, earned $750,000, significantly less than co-star Nicholas Hoult’s $2,000,000 for his role as Lex Luthor.
- Both Corenswet and Rachel Brosnahan’s lower salaries reflect their relative lack of big-screen experience compared to Hoult’s established film career.
- Despite the initial pay disparity, all three actors stand to earn more if the film performs well at the box office, which it currently is, with strong critical and audience scores.
Superman star earned $1,250,000 less than highest paid member of cast
Don’t cry, David, you’re Superman! (Picture: Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
Everyone knows you shouldn’t ask your colleagues what they’re getting paid.
However, the new Superman, David Corenswet, might want to ask his agent why he earned 1,250,000 less than his co-star Nicholas Hoult.
Yes, despite playing the title character and arguably the world’s most popular superhero, it turns out that David, 31, didn’t earn as much as you might expect for leading a film like Superman.
According to a new report from Puck, David and his onscreen love interest Rachel Brosnahan only earned a relatively meagre $750,000 for their work.
The former Skins star, however, earned a much more impressive $2,000,000 for playing the vile Lex Luthor, which makes him the highest paid member of the cast.
That may sound unfair, but there’s method in the madness.
While David and Rachel are stars in their own right – especially Rachel, who led her own TV show, The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel on Prime Video – both actors lacked the big screen experience.
Nicholas, meanwhile,e who’s starred in critically acclaimed flicks like Mad Max: Fury Road and Nosferatu alongside bigger franchise fare like X-Men, was able to negotiate a higher wage.
Before you start shouting about how unfair this is, though, be aware that all three actors are in line for more money if the film performs at the box office.
David and Rachel only earned $750,000 each… not that we’d complain (Picture: Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
That means if you think David and Rachel deserve a bit more cash in their pocket, you ned to head to the cinema and see Superman.
And why would you go see Superman? The film has been a critical and commercial hit.
At the time of writing, Superman has an impressive 82% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes and an even healthier audience score of 93%.
Those are some pretty impressive numbers, and it’s translating to box office success.
Highest-earning Superman movies at the US box office
The following figures are US only and unadjusted for inflation.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice – $330,360,194
Man of Steel – $291,045,518
Superman Returns – $200,081,192
Superman – $134,218,018
Superman II -$108,185,706
Superman III -$59,950,623
Superman IV: The Quest For Peace – $15,681,020
One person who’s not complaining is Nicholas Hoult (Picture: Warner Bros. Pictures via AP)
The film, which is directed by James Gunn, is on track to become the second-biggest Superman movie ever.
Recent Deadline reports suggest it’s earned $123 million in its opening weekend in the US. Once you factor in foreign film markets it’s expected that Superman will have brought in $210 million worldwide.
Now that may sound like a lot, but with The Wall Street Journal reporting that Superman had a $225 million budget not including marketing costs (which can double the cost of making a movie), the film hasn’t quite turned a profit just yet.
Still with numbers this good and little in the way of blockbuster competition until the release of Fantastic Four: First Steps it looks like Superman has saved the day… for the accountants at Warner Bros.
Superman is in theatres now.
