Brie Larson is back with her compelling on-screen presence as Captain Marvel with her new flick, The Marvels. Having debuted in the 2019 movie Captain Marvel (2019), she stole the show in Avengers: Endgame when she turned the tides to overpower Thanos. She attained the status of one of the most powerful MCU female characters and had a huge paycheck for making her debut. But, there are actors who made less than her for their debut in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
Her standalone movie was a commercial success which further demonstrated the popularity of female-led superhero films. She definitely brought a great charm in the MCU but here’s why she received a whopping salary for her debut.
Brie Larson’s Massive Paycheck for Captain Marvel
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Brie Larson gained global fame with her Captain Marvel role in Marvel Cinematic Universe, beginning with Captain Marvel. The movie was a financial success as it became the first female-led superhero film to gross over $1.1 billion worldwide.
As per The Hollywood Reporter, she received a huge payday of $5 million for her solo movie. Given that Marvel Studios initially offered a small salary to actors making their first appearance in movies, it was unlikely the case with her.
The reason behind the huge payday was simple! Before joining the MCU, she had already received an Oscar for Best Actress for playing a kidnapping victim in the drama, Room (2015). However, her debut salary totally bested out a few MCU stars who received less paychecks for their debut in the franchise.
5 MCU Actors With Less Payday as Brie Larson for Their Debut
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Robert Downey Jr.
For making his debut as Tony Stark/Iron Man in 2008’s Iron Man, Robert Downey Jr. was paid just $500,000. However, it was due to several reasons with one being his past issues that negatively affected his career at that time. Since the movie was not initially planned to be a blockbuster, Marvel Studios offered quite a less to the actor who was not an A-lister at the time. But his salary significantly grew as he reportedly earned $80 million in Avengers: Age of Ultron.
Chris Evans
Chris Evans who debuted as Steve Rogers a.k.a. Captain America, in 2011’s Captain America: The First Avenger received $300,000 for his role. While his debut salary is less than one would expect, it exponentially grew as he was paid a healthy $15 million for 2018’s Infinity War. This salary saw a further increase as he got $20 million for reprising his role in Avengers: Endgame.
Chris Hemsworth
Chris Hemsworth was relatively unknown at the time of his debut which is why he earned only $150,000 for his first appearance in Thor (2011). However, he also had a massive pay hike in the later appearances as he took home $15 million for Avengers: Endgame.
Scarlett Johansson
From making her debut as Natasha Romanoff/Black Widow in Downey Jr.’s Iron Man 2 (2008), Scarlett Johansson became one of the fan-favorite MCU stars. However, her debut appearance earned her a paycheck of $400,000. Just like others, her popularity and talent affected her paycheck as Disney publicly confirmed that she got $20 million for Black Widow.
Chadwick Boseman
Chadwick Boseman made his debut as T’Challa/Black Panther in Chris Evans’ Captain America: Civil War. For his cameo appearance, he received $700,000 but for his own movie, he earned $500,000 (via Go Social) plus a percentage of the movie’s profits.
