It takes us around 2 hours to watch, but many of our favorite movies are filmed over months... sometimes, even years. And they don't come cheap. According to Investopedia, it costs, on average, around $65 million to produce a major studio movie. That doesn't even cover distribution and marketing, which can push the total cost to a cool $100 million.
Some are even more expensive to make, like Napoleon Dynamite, which saw Hollywood forking out a whopping $400,000. Star Wars: The Force Awakens cost even more, with reports citing $533.2 million in total. On the other end of the spectrum, The Blair Witch Project was one of the cheapest cheapest films ever made, costing between $35,000 and $60,000.
A big chunk of a movie's budget goes towards paying our favorite actresses and actors. Brad Pitt, for example, came with a price tag of $30 million to star in and produce the 2026 Formula 1 film. And Robert Downey Jr. made around $75 million through salary and profit sharing for his role in Avengers: Endgame.
"These high costs make sense because A-list actors boost ticket sales," explains the Film Local site. "Studios view these huge salaries as investments that help guarantee audience turnout."
But celebrities aren't the only ones raking in the big bucks...
Some of the top Hollywood directors are coining it, with A-list film directors demanding between $5-10 million per film. According to Film Local's experts, the Directors Guild of America sets minimum rates at $24,599 per week for high-budget films. But established directors earn far above these minimums, adds the site.
"A typical $200 million blockbuster spends about 9% of its total budget on three lead actors, around $18 million," it reveals. "The biggest star usually takes most of this money, reflecting both their market value and the industry’s risky nature."
Adam Sandler hardly fails to make us laugh. But he's laughing too... all the way to the bank.
The actor raked in $48 million last year (after fees paid to his agent and manager), making him the highest paid Hollywood earner of 2025. According to Forbes, Sandler's long-term deal with Netflix means he gets paid well each year no matter what movie he puts out.
"Since 2015, he has made movies almost exclusively for Netflix under his overall deal," reports Screen Rant, revealing that Sandler's Happy Madison franchise is worth around $519 million.
Also making it onto the list of highest paid actors of 2025 were Tom Cruise, Mark Wahlberg, Scarlett Johansson, Brad Pitt, Denzel Washington, Jack Black and Millie Bobbie Brown, who (at just 22 years old), is the youngest actor ever featured on Forbes’ Highest-Paid Actors list.
Forbes puts the the combined earnings of the 20 highest-paid actors in Hollywood at collective $590 million. But notes that, while it may sound like a lot, actors are bringing in less than they used to.
"The haul is down 20% from last year’s $730 million, and this year’s top earner—Adam Sandler... fell well below last year’s No. 1 ($88 million)," reports the site.
If you think being a famous actor is all about glitz, glamor and big pay checks, think again. Many stars have revealed that they work extremely hard when on set.
When asked about filming Wednesday, Jenna Ortega said that she had to show up to set two hours early, then work a 12- to 14-hour day, and it didn't end there. The actress would then head home and attend online lessons via Zoom.
"Or show up to my apartment, [and] my cello teacher was already waiting for me," she says. "It was just constantly going, and if you could on a weekend, if we weren’t shooting the sixth day that week, it was, ‘All right, well then, we’ll get your lessons in on that day.’”
