It appears that Emma Watson's Beauty and the Beast paycheck will have her laughing all the way to Gringotts.
Sources claim that Emma Watson received $2.5 million upfront for her role, a salary which will increase to circa $15 million if Beauty And The Beast enjoys box office success similar to Maleficent's $759 million takings worldwide.
And given that the film has so far broken five box office records, earned $350 million globally in its opening weekend, and as of today, amassed worldwide earnings of $750million, we'd say that's pretty (as in VERY) likely.
After arriving in cinemas on March 17th, the film now holds the record for the biggest domestic and international opening for a PG-rated film. It's also the seventh biggest box office opening of all time (sitting, funnily enough, behind the final Harry Potter film, The Deathly Hallows: Part II) and the most successful opening since Captain America: Civil War last year.
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Disney is wise to the box office power of landing the right star for the right role (and it's hard to think of a young actress who would be more 'on brand' for Belle than Watson). However, the studio is also keenly (and pragmatically) aware that we're going to want to see their big-budget re-makes, whatever the names on the posters. ‘If it’s the right vehicle for the right star, they can be great. But Disney also has the luxury to not have to put a star in there,' the source explains.
Emma famously earned $60 million over the course of the eight Harry Potter films; divided evenly, that equates to $7.5 million for each - a figure which her Beauty and the Beast salary neatly doubles.
What does this mean for Emma? Well, not only does it skyrocket her to the upper ends of Hollywood's best paid actress list but it also means she can, as insiders claim, name her price for her next movie. This makes her a strong contender for this year's highest paid actress, and therefore, a very powerful figure in Hollywood to boot.
Want to speculate how much she'll earn for her next project? Hmm, be our guest...
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