In terms of major paychecks for movie stars, the MCU got off to a relatively modest start.
Since then, though, thanks to sequel contracts, bonuses, and gross percentages, many of the
MCU's stars have made serious bank, and some of them have joined the ranks of the highest-paid
actors in the world.
Here's a look at some of the reported top earners.
Marvel Studios has historically done its best to save on upfront costs of production by
paying its new stars a relatively small sum for starring in superhero films, then offering
more significant pay in the form of backend compensation like bonuses and box office percentages.
This is how Robert Downey Jr. went from earning six figures for Iron Man in 2008 to taking
home $75 million for Avengers: Infinity War in 2018.
Still, even Marvel's upfront earnings for its stars have grown along with the studio's
box office success, and that shows when it comes to stars like Chadwick Boseman.
Boseman, who debuted as Black Panther in 2016's Captain America: Civil War, got his first
solo superhero film in 2018.
Black Panther was a worldwide phenomenon and currently reigns as the tenth highest-grossing
film of all time, making it Marvel's most successful solo superhero movie effort.
Boseman was reportedly paid $2 million to star in the film, which is an impressive number
for his first Marvel solo movie.
Compared to what the film ultimately earned, though, it feels like Marvel got a bargain.
Brie Larson's 2019 debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe had a lot riding on it, and not just
because it was an attempt to introduce yet another sub-franchise into the Marvel Studios
family.
Captain Marvel, starring Larson in the title role, was the studio's first female-led superhero
film.
Fans hoped it would be another breakthrough film for diversity in the genre, much like
Black Panther was in early 2018.
The film ultimately took in $1.12 billion worldwide, and Larson is set to be a major
piece of Marvel's storytelling going forward.
The effort paid off.
Even before we all knew what Captain Marvel would be, though, Larson — who was already
an Oscar winner for her role in Room when she was cast in the MCU — was looking for
a payday that was going to give her a solid foundation, particularly when it came to pay
equity with male co-stars.
To that end, her ultimate Captain Marvel payday was reportedly $5 million, or ten times what
Robert Downey Jr. made upfront to star in Iron Man back in 2008.
Samuel L. Jackson's filmography is the highest-grossing of any actor on the planet, at more than $13.3
billion worldwide, thanks in no small part to his ability to become a part of major franchises
even if he's not in a leading role.
This happened with the Star Wars prequels, and it's happened again with the MCU, in which
he's been appearing ever since the post-credits scene of Iron Man back in 2008.
"Who the hell are you?"
"Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D."
"Oh."
"I'm here to talk to you about the Avenger initiative."
2019 alone finds Jackson appearing in three different Marvel films, though his roles in
the films range from sidekick to cameo.
That makes his overall salary for the flicks very hard to pin down, but Jackson's certainly
made an effort to keep on par with some of the franchise's bigger stars.
For The Avengers in 2012, he reportedly took home somewhere between $4-6 million after
bonuses came in, and for Avengers: Age of Ultron he was among the cast members who reportedly
went after at least $5 million upfront, plus even more once the film started to make serious
money.
There's no word on his Spider-Man: Far From Home payday just yet, but Jackson has said
he'd happily keep playing Nick Fury for as long as Marvel will have him, so there's a
lot of earning potential left there.
Before Mark Ruffalo was in the picture, Edward Norton played the Hulk.
Norton ultimately bowed out of the MCU due to various creative differences.
So, when it came time to make The Avengers, Ruffalo was the only member of the main team
who hadn't already appeared in some capacity in another MCU flick.
"Should have got paid up front, Banner."
That could have put him at a disadvantage, but he mostly kept pace with his co-stars.
Ruffalo reportedly joined the club of actors — including Chris Hemsworth, Chris Evans,
and Jeremy Renner — who managed to earn $2 to $3 million for The Avengers after bonuses,
and then also became one of the team members who pushed for a raise to the $5 million range
for Avengers: Age of Ultron.
There's no reliable reporting on what came next for him in terms of pay for Thor: Ragnarok
and the last two Avengers movies, but Ruffalo likely got his due for continuing his wonderful
work as Dr. Bruce Banner.
Benedict Cumberbatch was already a pop culture fan-favorite and award winner before he was
tapped to play surgeon-turned-sorcerer Doctor Strange.
A bigger name means a bigger paycheck.
Did the MCU money guys deliver?
You bet.
For his MCU debut in 2016's Doctor Strange, Cumberbatch reportedly earned a little more
than $3 million.
That solo film, plus his cameo appearance in Thor: Ragnarok and his supporting roles
in Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, bumped his Marvel payday up to about $5 million
by 2019.
Cumberbatch's success in the MCU so far is about to lead to even bigger things.
According to The Mirror, the actor is negotiating for a nearly $10 million payday for the upcoming
Doctor Strange sequel.
"Dormammu…
I've come to bargain."
"You've come to die."
Like the other major "Phase One" MCU stars, Chris Hemsworth had to settle for a relatively
low payday at first, but as the films grew in popularity, his initial pay and the bonuses
he stood to earn continued to climb.
Though his Thor paycheck was relatively small, Hemsworth's pay swelled by the time of the
first Avengers film, earning him $2-3 million with various box office bonuses.
As the sequels piled up, so too did the higher paychecks.
That deal reportedly shot up to $5 million upfront plus future bonuses for Avengers:
Age of Ultron, and, by the time the "Infinity Saga" neared its Endgame, Hemsworth's payout
had swelled even more.
Sources say he collected something in the range of $15 to $20 million for Thor: Ragnarok,
and took home similar paychecks for both Infinity War and Endgame.
Plus, the finale of Endgame leaves plenty of room for Hemsworth to keep earning Marvel
money in future films.
There's a remarkable degree of symmetry to the Marvel careers of Chris Evans and Chris
Hemsworth, at least when it comes to the rise of their respective salaries.
Evans, like Hemsworth, arrived with a relatively low payday for Captain America: The First
Avenger, but things started to really pick up when it came time to finally assemble the
team with The Avengers.
Like Hemsworth, Evans reportedly earned a final paycheck in the $2-3 million range for
that film, and then started aiming even higher for sequels.
Evans was also among the group of actors who angled for a $5 million upfront paycheck for
Avengers: Age of Ultron, and then came Captain America: Civil War.
Evans reportedly renegotiated a payday of $15 million for that film, and by the time
the last two Avengers flicks rolled around, Evans was, like Hemsworth, also aiming for
a payday in the $15-20 million range.
Scarlett Johansson is just now getting her own Black Widow solo movie, despite being
one of the MCU's longest-serving stars.
She first appeared in a supporting role in Iron Man 2, then transitioned into being the
first — and, for a little while, the only — female member of the Avengers, making
her an integral part of the MCU throughout the Infinity Saga.
Johansson was an established movie star before the MCU kicked off, so even her earliest Marvel
paydays were substantial.
She reportedly earned somewhere in the neighborhood of $4-6 million for her work on The Avengers
after collecting various box office bonuses on that film.
Her numbers have climbed since then, but for Johansson the best is yet to come.
Black Widow will net her a reported $20 million payday for serving as both star and producer.
When Iron Man arrived in 2008, Robert Downey Jr. immediately hit a new level of stardom.
Downey's initial pay for Iron Man was rather small compared to where he ended up, but bonuses
based on the film's box office gross helped pad that number out.
Then, in the wake of the film's success, Downey and his reps started renegotiating, and the
paychecks for the Godfather of the MCU just kept gaining more zeroes.
"The truth is…
I am Iron Man."
Downey was ultimately able to cut a deal with Marvel Studios by which he collects a hefty
backend earnings percentage not just from Iron Man solo films, but from Avengers movies.
The actual percentage is not publicly known, but it's reportedly in the 5-7 percent range,
which would mean massive earnings.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Downey took home somewhere in the neighborhood of
$75 million for Avengers: Infinity War, a number that likely climbed for Avengers: Endgame.
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