Sixty years ago, Marlon Brando and Elizabeth Taylor were the first Hollywood stars to demand million-dollar checks for a single film. Fast forward to the early 2000s, Keanu Reeves set an astronomical benchmark by raking in $156 million in a single production which makes him the world’s highest-paid actor. That mark has remained untouched for more than 21 years.
The late ’90s proved to be a turning point for Keanu Reeves following The Matrix. Warner Bros signed Reeves on to the sequels, being the highly-anticipated Matrix Reloaded and Matrix Revolutions. Shot back-to-back, Reeves received an upfront payment of $30 million coupled with a very lucrative profit-sharing deal and residual income. When the two hit theaters in 2003, they collectively grossed some $1.2 billion.
What makes Reeves the world’s highest-paid actor?
What distinguished Keanu was the deal structure. Unlike any other Hollywood superstar, Reeves’s earnings soared with streaming, TV syndication, and box office revenues, making his total an unprecedented $156 million. That record had been held by Alec Guinness, who made $94 million from Star Wars, including re-releases.
Keanu stands out because the two movies were released as parts of it. This gave him more grounds to surpass competitors like Tom Cruise and Will Smith, whose top earner was $100 million at one time. Cruise reached his limit with Top Gun: Maverick and Mission Impossible 2, while Will Smith’s record was earned with Men in Black 3.
Strangely, Reeves never again scored that massive payday. On John Wick, which revitalized his global superstar status, he supposedly pocketed between $15 million to $30 million per movie.
Keanu’s $156 million bonanza is Hollywood lore and put him solidly on the list of the world’s highest-paid actors.
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