It feels good, doesn’t it, to finally have a big win for the DCEU? After several years of failed efforts and rocky starts, Warner Bros.’ burgeoning cinematic universe is finally finding its feet thanks to Patty Jenkins’ Wonder Woman. Not only is the film a hit with critics and audiences alike, but it’s also making big bucks at the box office, surpassing any and all expectations that we had beforehand and bringing in a very healthy profit for the studio.
As such, you’d imagine that star Gal Gadot is probably collecting a pretty nice payday as well, right? Wrong. Or at least, she hasn’t just yet. While it’s true that actors and actresses can receive bonuses for having their films hit certain milestones in terms of how much they earn during their theatrical run, what we’re looking at here is Gadot’s salary for her work on Wonder Woman itself. And in news that comes as a bit of a surprise (though maybe it shouldn’t), it’s rather low.
The actress was paid $300,000 for each of her DCEU appearances thus far, and will make the same amount for Justice League as well. Given that her role wasn’t terribly large in Batman V Superman, that’s understandable. But to see that she’s making the same amount for the other two flicks is definitely shocking. Sure, it may be a lot of money to most people, but when you look at some of her co-stars, it pales in comparison.
As The Daily Dot points out, Henry Cavill got paid $14 million (after bonuses) for Man of Steel, and he was probably just as much of an unknown as Gadot was when he signed on for his DCEU role. Then again, if you look at Marvel, Chris Evans made the same amount as the Wonder Woman actress did for Captain America: The First Avenger, though his salary has been increased significantly in the time since. Not to mention that that film was made back in 2011, at a time when the comic book movie craze hadn’t caught on like it has now. As such, Gadot’s salary should definitely have been higher.
If the actress had only signed a one picture deal and re-negotiated after Batman V Superman, her payday probably would have been better, given that she was the best part about that movie. But as it stands, she’s made just $300,000 per film so far and will continue to do so until her current contract expires, which is after Justice League. At that point, she’ll no doubt be in a good position to ask for more, given that she’s one of the brightest spots in the DCEU and the studio needs her.
Still, it’s a bit discouraging to see that Cavill got $14 million and Gadot was locked in for only $300,000, as it only strengthens the argument for the gender pay gap in Hollywood. If you look on the bright side though, now that studios have seen how successful female-led superhero movies can be thanks to Wonder Woman, perhaps it will help actresses negotiate for better salaries moving forward. If nothing else, we can at least rest easy knowing that Gadot is going to get a significant pay bump for the inevitable Wonder Woman 2 – whenever it ends up happening.