Nicholas Hoult Was Paid More for ‘Superman’ Than Rachel Brosnahan and David Corenswet… Combined

The new Superman movie has officially landed in theaters, and while fans are talking about the story and the action, there’s also a lot of buzz around how much the actors were paid. Nicholas Hoult, who plays the villain Lex Luthor, reportedly made $2 million for the role. That makes him the highest-paid actor in the film.

David Corenswet, who wears the Superman cape, was paid $750,000. The same goes for Rachel Brosnahan, who plays Lois Lane. Both of them have deals that include bonus money if the movie does well at the box office.

This kind of deal is pretty common for newer stars taking on big roles. Corenswet is still considered a fresh face in film, and while Brosnahan is known from TV, she hasn’t had major movie roles before this. Hoult’s paycheck for the movie was first reported by Puck News.

Director James Gunn didn’t load the cast with big Hollywood names. At the movie’s premiere at the Chinese Theatre in Hollywood on July 7, around 20 actors were introduced, and not one of them was a major movie star. Gunn seemed proud of that. In a chat with CNN, he said, “I think I’m really good at finding people who become huge stars,” and admitted, “There’s a bit of an ego in that.” He brought up Chris Pratt from Guardians of the Galaxy as an example of someone he helped turn into a star.

The approach seems to have saved Warner Bros. a lot of money. CEO David Zaslav was all smiles at the premiere, even before the reviews came out. The early reaction from critics has been positive, and expectations are high for the film’s first weekend in theaters.

This is very different from how things were handled back in 2013, when Man of Steel came out. That film had a then-unknown Henry Cavill as Superman, but he was surrounded by major stars like Amy Adams, Kevin Costner, Michael Shannon, Diane Lane, Laurence Fishburne, and Russell Crowe, all of whom came with much bigger price tags.

The new Superman movie, directed and written by James Gunn, kicks off a fresh start for DC’s film universe. It’s the first official film in the new DCU. The story follows Superman as he tries to show the world he’s their hero, even as Lex Luthor works behind the scenes to make people turn against him.

Filming started last year in February and took place in places like Svalbard, Norway, as well as Georgia and Ohio in the United States. Most of the work was done at Trilith Studios in Atlanta. Shooting wrapped up in July 2024.

The movie was inspired by the All-Star Superman comics by Grant Morrison and Frank Quitely. It’s now playing in theaters, and fans are waiting to see if James Gunn’s plan, low-cost casting, and strong storytelling will pay off at the box office.

Have something to add? Let us know in the comments below!