Denzel Washington is one of Hollywood’s biggest and best actors, but his highest paying role was actually for one of his worst-reviewed movies. Over the course of his entire career, Denzel became a bankable movie star who could help turn everything from action movies to awards-worthy movies into box office hits. His popularity and recognizability meant that his pay continued to rise. This resulted in him making about $20 million per movie starting in the 2000s thanks to movies like Out of Time, Man on Fire, and American Gangster. Denzel Washington’s pay for these movies might seem like a lot, but it pales in comparison to his biggest salary.
Denzel’s stardom and power in Hollywood did not waver in the 2010s or 2020s. It is reasonable to assume that his biggest box office hits would have brought him the biggest paydays, such as Denzel Washington’s The Equalizer salary for the entire trilogy mounting up to an impressive figure. However, he traditionally maintained his $20 million salary per movie with productions like 2 Guns, but he also took pay cuts for projects like Flight and The Tragedy of Macbeth. Mixed with his usual pay and reduced rates came a critically maligned movie that gave Denzel Washington his highest paying role.
Denzel Washington Was Paid $40 Million For The Little Things
Denzel Washington’s highest paying role came with The Little Things. The movie released in January 2021 gave the actor one of the highest salaries ever for a movie star in a single project. According to Variety, Denzel Washington was paid $40 million for The Little Things. This is double his usual salary, and the Denzel Washington movie made him one of the highest-paid actors of the year. The massive pay to star in The Little Things was not always the case, though, as Denzel’s salary increased substantially thanks to the movie being released during the COVID-19 pandemic.
When Denzel Washington originally signed on to star in The Little Things, the thriller was meant to be released exclusively in theaters and potentially give him another successful box office launch. The pandemic brought changes for the Warner Bros. movie as it was decided that all the studio’s movies would debut on HBO Max and in theaters simultaneously. Denzel Washington and his team fought for better compensation after this change knowing it would hurt The Little Things‘ box office, which finished with $30 million worldwide, because Denzel’s deal included bonuses tied to box office performance. Warner Bros. then agreed to pay Denzel $40 million for The Little Things.
The Little Things Received Some Of Denzel Washington’s Worst Reviews
The record pay for Denzel Washington’s movie did not help The Little Things in the slightest. The movie has a critic score of 45% on Rotten Tomatoes, which puts it among the bottom ten Rotten Tomatoes scores for Denzel’s movies. The Little Things‘ reviews reflect a mixed-to-negative response and the clear disappointment that came with the movie. Despite including Rami Malek and Jared Leto among the cast and John Lee Hancock directing, the movie did nothing to stand out and leave a lasting impression. Now, The Little Things will best be known for giving Denzel Washington his highest-paid role.
The Little Things
When Kern County Deputy Sheriff Joe Deacon goes to Los Angeles to gather evidence for an assignment, he becomes heavily invested in a serial killer case in the city. Denzel Washington stars as Joe ‘Deke’ Deacon in the John Lee Hancock directed film alongside Academy Award winners Rami Malek and Jared Leto.
- Release Date
- January 29, 2021
- Director
- John Lee Hancock
- Cast
- Sofia Vassilieva , Isabel Arraiza , Stephanie Erb , Denzel Washington , Kerry O’Malley , Rami Malek , Jason James Richter , Terry Kinney , Adam J. Harrington , Jared Leto , Tom Hughes , Chris Bauer , Natalie Morales , Michael Hyatt
- Runtime
- 128minutes
