It took almost 10 years and 7 Marvel Cinematic Universe appearances, but Scarlett Johansson has finally earned that mega Marvel payday that she deserves, as she prepares for the upcoming, still-unannounced “Black Widow” film.
According to THR, Johansson will earn a reported $15 million for her role in the upcoming standalone film from director Cate Shortland. This finally puts her on the level of Chris Evans and Chris Hemsworth, as they both earned that amount for their roles as Captain America and Thor, respectively, in this year’s “Avengers: Infinity War.” Of course, if you’re wondering, none of those three OG Marvel folks are near Robert Downey, Jr. But more on that in a bit.
READ MORE: Scarlett Johansson Is Easily 2018’s Highest-Paid Actress Thanks To ‘Avengers’ Films
Now, for us mere non-superhero mortals, the idea of $15 million is silly. However, in the realm of these Marvel Studios films, which routinely pull in almost a billion dollars and have launched each of its respective stars into sudden rock star popularity, Johansson’s new payday is great, but not ludicrous by any stretch.
When you look at the history of the Marvel Studios paydays for its stars, especially in the solo films, what Johansson has earned is definitely spectacular. For the first “Iron Man,” RDJ famously only made $500,000. That was back before the “Kevin Feige rules all” MCU days, where the studio was notoriously cheap. However, RDJ quickly made up for it by the time the first “Avengers” film rolled around, where he reportedly earned $50 million. Ten years after that first film, the salaries for all cast members reportedly eclipsed $100 million for the aforementioned ‘Infinity War,’ which shows that things aren’t what they used to be back in 2008.
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Now, Marvel Studios is shelling out more and more for actors appearing in their first solo Marvel film. Chadwick Boseman pulled in $2 million for the first “Black Panther” film, and given that project’s success, a very big payday seems to be in Boseman’s future.
And most recently, THR reports that Brie Larson earned $5 million for her role in “Captain Marvel.” Granted, that is a special case, considering Marvel Studios signed Larson while she’s arguably at the height of her acting career, earning an Oscar in 2016. Side note: THR reports that Larson also has a seven-film deal with Marvel Studios. Yep, 7 future Captain Marvel appearances [update: nope, see below]. So, those reports that Larson might be leading the way with Boseman as the heads of the post-“Avengers 4” MCU seem accurate.
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And for fairness purposes, THR reports that Marvel Studios adamantly denies these numbers, but says it never discusses salaries or deals publicly. A studio spokesperson says, “Marvel Studios disputes the accuracy of these numbers, and as a matter of policy, we never publicly disclose salaries or deal terms.”
There’s still no word on when we might get a “Black Widow” film, as Feige and Company have been famously tight-lipped about anything after May 2019. However, with Johansson signed, a director hired, and a story featuring one of the most famous superheroes in the world, Marvel Studios is probably rushing “Black Widow” into production as soon as they can.
Counterpoint: this is not true https://t.co/aDlKZu8Rqo
— Brie Larson (@brielarson) October 11, 2018
