Variety has run a piece discussing how much everyone for Star Wars: The Force Awakens was paid out, roughly. The numbers aren’t very specific:. The Daily Mail recently claimed Harrison Ford was paid as much as 25 million, but Variety shoots that down and says:

Sources tell Variety Harrison Ford came away the big winner on Disney and Lucasfilm’s sequel with a paycheck in the eight-figure range ($10 million to $20 million) to reprise his role of Han Solo.

What is shocking is how little the two new main heroes were paid:

Newcomers John Boyega and Daisy Ridley were paid in the low-six-figure range ($100k-$300k).

The more established actors faired a bit better:

Adam Driver and Oscar Isaac, meanwhile, received offers of mid- to high- six figures. Because Driver and Isaac had fixed quotes from previous film and TV work, sources say their deals were negotiated higher compared to Boyega and Ridley, who, for the most part, had never appeared in a large-scale film before.

The actors like Hamill and Fisher will be paid via a legacy pay scale:

Disney made a decision in 2014 prior to casting the new roles to create a “legacy pay scale” intended for talent like Ford, Fisher and Hamill, who had previously been a part of the “Star Wars” universe, and general pay scale for actors that would be appearing for the first time.

The article goes onto say that it is fairly common practice today to pay new actors very little but with the promise of larger payouts for future installments. The “legacy pay scale” is something I find interesting. It seems to take care of returning actors. That sounds really good but I also wonder if it might complicate the return of classic characters for financial reasons?

It does make sense for Harrison Ford, one of the biggest stars of our generation to get a considerably higher payout considering this will be his last appearance in Star Wars if he’s not a zombie. Hopefully the younger actors fair better in the future but the exposure should be worth a lot if played correctly.

(Via Jedi News)