In that time, Robert Downey Jr., as Tony Stark, enjoyed a cool career resurgence while other stars (even some relative unknowns at the time like Chris Hemsworth and Tom Hiddleston) rose through the ranks as well. And with their MCU careers cemented, their pay pushed into blockbuster proportions.
It’s time to assemble all of the Avengers’ paychecks to see how these performers made out over the course of their MCU tenure. Some, like Downey and Chris Evans, have ended their journey while others are still out there, as the franchise’s founders, readying themselves for their next handsomely-paid adventure.
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Robert Downey, Jr.
Robert Downey, Jr. earned $500,000 for the first Iron Man film back in 2008. Flash-forward over a decade, and nine MCU films (plus a cameo in The Incredible Hulk), and Downey was pulling in $75 million for 2019’s Avengers: Endgame, which is the highest-grossing film of all time. Downey reportedly raked in $20 million up front for Endgame and then an additional $55 million in a back-end deal that gave him 8% of the film’s profit.
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Chris Evans
Chris Evans, who was certainly no stranger to comic book films at the time (Fantastic Four, The Losers), made a cool million for Captain America: The First Avenger. By the time it was time for the “time heist” in Avengers: Endgame, Evans was earning $15 million per Avengers outing.
Scarlett Johansson
As huge as Scarlett Johansson’s Black Widow is in the MCU, having debuted back in Iron Man 2, she’s never had her own solo adventure until 2020 (and that film’s release date has been pushed due to the pandemic). For the second Iron Man movie, Johansson reportedly made $400,000. By the time the Snap settled, like Evans and Hemsworth, she was making $15 million an Avengers film. Now she’s expected to make around $20 million for Black Widow.
Chris Hemsworth
Not a household name at the time, Chris Hemsworth earned $150,000 for 2011’s Thor. He’s been earning $15 million an MCU film now since 2017’s Thor: Ragnarok.
Mark Ruffalo
A late-ish entry to the team, Mark Ruffalo replaced The Incredible Hulk’s Edward Norton as Bruce Banner in The Avengers. For this movie he made around $2 to $3 million. We assume Ruffalo made a lot more for Ragnarok, Infinity War, and Endgame but those numbers haven’t been fully reported. He may or may not have a similar deal to Hemsworth, Johansson, and Evans.
Jeremy Renner
After making a brief appearance in Thor, Jeremy Renner then earned $3 million for The Avengers. After presumedly making a lot more for Civil War and his subsequent Avengers films (he reportedly made $6.1 million for Age of Ultron). Renner’s Hawkeye is one of the MCU’s supplemental heroes who’s now getting their own Disney+ series. Renner might get his biggest payday to date when he headlines his own Marvel Studios’ series.
Don Cheadle
Don Cheadle got $1 million dollars for Iron Man 2, where he replaced Terrance Howard as James “Rhodey” Rhodes aka War Machine. At this time, it’s not known what Cheadle has been making since his debut as War Machine, but some best guesses place it at around $4 to $7 million a film.
Tom Holland
When Tom Holland’s Spider-Man swung into the MCU he was making $250,000 for Civil War and $500,000 for Spider-Man: Homecoming. We don’t know what the young star made for Far From Home but he did get a pay bump for Avengers: Infinity War, earning $3 million.
Anthony Mackie
We don’t know what Anthony Mackie was making for each of his films, which began with Captain America: The Winter Soldier and then culminated with the awesome “On your left” callback in Endgame (though it’s rumored he made $100,000 for his small part in Age of Ultron). Like Jeremy Renner though, Mackie is about to top-line his own Disney+ series, The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, alongside Sebastian Stan. For that he’s reportedly making $475,000 per episode, which would bring him to $3.8 million for the series.
Paul Rudd
Despite having a successful TV and movie track record at the time, Paul Rudd was reportedly paid $300,000 for Ant-Man. We can assume that Rudd’s pay went up significantly for Civil War, Ant-Man and the Wasp, and Avengers Endgame.
Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany
Ostensibly, Elizabeth Olsen and Paul Bettany made their MCU debut in Age of Ultron, as Scarlett Witch and Vision, though if we’re counting voice acting Bettany was actually one of the main starters for the entire MCU as he also voiced Jarvis in all three Iron Man movies. Details about both of their actual salaries are hush hush though they’re both starring in Disney+’s WandaVision, a six-episode series that will directly tie into Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness.
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Chadwick Boseman
Chadwick Boseman took home $700,000 for his debut in Captain America: Civil War and then pulled in $2 million for his solo movie. Boseman’s next reported project for Marvel is Black Panther 2, so it’s safe to assume, given the exceptional success of the first film, that Boseman will get a pay hike and profit-sharing.
Brie Larson
Oscar winner Brie Larson made $5 million in her debut as Captain Marvel, which also came with a seven-picture deal. Up next for Larson, unless she appears in Marvel’s Eternals or some other MCU project, is Captain Marvel 2.
Benedict Cumberbatch
Benedict Cumberbatch’s MCU payments have been going up steadily since his debut as Doctor Strange, with reports saying he earned about $5.1 million for Infinity War and will get $6.4 million for the Doctor Strange sequel.
Chris Pratt
Chris Pratt, who was known mostly for his many seasons on NBC’s Parks and Recreation at the time, reportedly made $1.5 million for his work on Guardians of the Galaxy. It’s rumored that he made $5 million for Avengers: Infinity War. It’s actually outside of the MCU where Pratt seems to be picking up the most pay, netting $10 million for Jurassic World and $12 million for Passengers.
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Matt Fowler is a writer for IGN and a member of the Television Critics Association. Follow him on Twitter at @TheMattFowler and Facebook at Facebook.com/MattBFowler.