Everyone knows that Marvel Studios films can bring in big money at the box office. Their titles have opened near or at the top of the box office for 20 straight films. And that trend is unlikely to stop in the near future with each and very new addition to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While these films can open with big numbers, its biggest stars are also making bank. A new report reveals some of the salaries that these actors make and the deals that they sign onto. More on the report here below.

THR was the first to exclusively break the news. According to their report, Scarlett Johansson, who plays Black Widow, will be landing a $15 million pay day for her role in the Black Widow standalone film. They add that that salary is what Chris Evans and Chris Hemsworth each earned for playing Captain America and Thor, respectively, in this year’s Avengers: Infinity War. The two also earned that much for their most recent films, Captain America: Civil War and Thor: Ragnarok, respectively. Which is huge when compared to what the studio was able to pay Robert Downey Jr. when it was just starting out with Iron Man in 2008. At that time, he was only paid $500,000. Flash forward four years later to The Avengers (2012), where he was paid $50 million. That’s quite a pay raise. Johansson only earned a low seven-figure deal, but the Black Widow standalone film proves that she has earned it.

A Marvel spokesperson, in response to this story, said in a statement: “Marvel Studios disputes the accuracy of these numbers, and as a matter of policy, we never publicly disclose salaries or deal terms.” Which leads us to our next bit in the report.

According to THR, Captain Marvel star Brie Larson has signed on to a $5 million seven-picture deal that locks her in for multiple franchises. Larson took to Twitter to dispute that claim saying that it wasn’t true.

Counterpoint: this is not true https://t.co/aDlKZu8Rqo

— Brie Larson (@brielarson) October 11, 2018

It’s not clear what kind of deal Larson signed. For all we know the figures could be wrong. Or maybe, she isn’t in the MCU for as long as we’d like to think. Without knowing all of the details, we are merely just speculating.

Looking at these numbers, it would be crazy to give out a check with these kinds of numbers. While the box office does speak for itself, there are also production budgets and marketing campaigns to consider. And those don’t come cheap. So these paychecks only add to the high cost of making these superhero films. And yet, looking at it now, as long as Marvel Studios films are able to earn what they earn, then it only makes sense to give the actors a nice slice of the pie. THR adds “Marvel typically allows its actors to share in the upside of a film, including bonuses of up to several million dollars based on the film’s performance.”

While Iron Man, Thor, and Captain America have been at the forefront of the first three phases, heroes like Captain Marvel, Spider-Man, Black Panther, and Doctor Strange will now pave the way for a more expansive MCU. One that would involve The Eternals and much more.

[Source: THR]