As soon as he was done with Spectre, Daniel Craig only did the remaining James Bond installments for the $$$ that he was being offered. Here are 14 more such roles that actors did only for the money:
1. SIR LAURENCE OLIVIER // INCHON (1981)
Sir Laurence Olivier did Inchon purely for money. He claimed had to pay for three children in school, for a family, and for their future. “I’ve earned the right to damn well grab whatever I can get in the time I’ve got left,” he told a reporter who asked him why he did a movie like that.
2. GLENN CLOSE // GUARDIANS OF THE GALAXY (2014)
Glenn Close agreed to do a role in Guardians of the Galaxy only for the $$$. “I’m doing GOTG because it will then afford me to go do the other kind of movies that I really love, and hopefully I will have a great time on Guardians of the Galaxy too,” she said.
3. WILL FERELL // ANCHORMAN 2 (2013)
Will Ferrell was pretty blunt about why he did Anchorman 2, “We don’t think we can make it as good. It would be really fun to do, so we might just try to make the craziest sequel you’ve ever seen. It could be terrible, but if they’re going to pay us to do it, then why not, right?”, he said in an interview.
4. AMANDA SEYFRIED // LETTERS TO JULIET (2010)
Amanda Seyfried signed up Letters to Juliet solely for the money. When she got asked about doing rom-coms, she said, “Sometimes, when you want to buy an apartment in Manhattan, you gotta do one or two, I won’t say Letters To Juliet didn’t get me an apartment.”
5. RICHARD DREYFUSS // RED (2010)
Richard Dreyfuss played the bad guy in RED because of the good paycheck they offered him. “I did it for money and to work with this group of folks. I’m nothing if not honest,” he said.
6. DANIEL CRAIG // JAMES BOND (2015)
Daniel Craig claims that after Spectre, he apparently kept playing Bond just for the money. “I’m not in discussion with anybody about anything. If I did another Bond movie, it would only be for the money,” he said in an interview.
7. HENRY CAVILL // MAN OF STEEL (2013)
Henry Cavill openly claims that he plays heroes and superhumans for the money that it fetches him. “The money’s fantastic and that’s something which I deem-and again, it is frowned upon – very important,” he said.
8. ELLEN POMPEO // GREY’S ANATOMY (2005)
Ellen Pompeo continued doing Grey’s Anatomy totally for the money it was getting her. In an interview, she said, “I made a decision to make money, and not chase creative acting roles.”
9. TIM ROTH // UNITED PASSIONS (2014)
Tim Roth signed the role of FIFA president Sepp Blatter just for the handsome paycheck. “I had two kids in college so I had to make a decision and it was probably poorly judged, but once you make that decision you have to follow through,” he said about his role.
10. SIR MICAHEL CAINE // JAWS IV (1987)
Sir Michael Caine did Jaws IV: The Revenge just for the $$$ they were offering him. He once wrote, “I have never seen the film, but by all accounts it was terrible. However, I have seen the house that it built, and it is terrific.”
11. STEPHEN DILLANE // GAME OF THRONES (2012)
Stephen Dillane didn’t quite understand the character of Stannis Baratheon in GoT and signed up only for the money that the studio was offering him. In an interview, he said, “It’s pretty brutal. I couldn’t watch much of that anyway. It’s hardcore. Too tough for me. Money is the main thing I got out of it.”
13. ALEC GUINNESS // STAR WARS (1983)
Alec Guinness could tolerate working in Star Wars because of the handsome paycheck the studio had offered him. “Apart from the money, I regret having embarked on the film. I like them well enough, but it’s not an acting job, the dialogue which is lamentable.”
14. JACKIE CHAN // RUSH HOUR (1998)
Despite making an appearance in all three installments of the Rush Hour franchise, Jackie Chan says he found no point in doing it in the first place. “There was no reason [in making it], you just give me the money and I’m fine. I dislike Rush Hour the most, but ironically it sold really well in the U.S. and Europe,” he said.
15. MORGAN FREEMAN // LONDON HAS FALLEN (2016)
Freeman revealed that his biggest motivation for coming back to the series was because of the $$$ the studio was offering him. He says he doesn’t know if and when the next big-budget movie will be offered to him.
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