From $3 to $100 million: How much Hollywood stars actually got paid for their biggest roles.

Despite what you may think, not every starring role comes with a hefty paycheck.

While some films gross hundreds of millions of dollars, several accolades and great reviews, actors don't always get the amount they deserve to star in the film... but sometimes they do. 

Based on that thought, it got us thinking about what actors have worked for chump change and which actors have gotten eye-watering amounts of money for their roles. 

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Below is how much exactly 10 Hollywood stars got paid for their biggest roles. 

Jennifer Lopez

Paid: $0 for Hustlers. 

Jennifer Lopez in Hustlers. Image: STXfilms.

Lopez, who starred in the 2019 film Hustlers admitted her pay for the movie was abysmal, considering it made US $157.6 million at the Box Office. 

Her character, Ramona, was a stripper from the Bronx who created an elaborate heist alongside her partner-in-crime Destiny (Constance Wu). The pair allegedly drugged men, took them to strip clubs around New York City, and charged exorbitant amounts of money using their credit cards. 

"I didn't get paid a whole bunch of money for Hustlers," she shared with GQ in 2019. "I did it for free and produced it. I bank on myself. Like 'Jenny From the Block'; I do what I want, I do what I love."

George Clooney 

Paid: $3 for Good Night And Good Luck.

George Clooney in Good Night And Good Luck. Image: 2929 Entertainment. The 2005 film Good Night and Good Luck was a passion project for Clooney, who took home a $3 profit for writing, directing and acting in it.

Set in the 1950s, the film explores how American journalist Edward Murrow started a bitter battle with Senator Joseph McCarthy. Good Night And Good Luck received a tonne of praise for highlighting the role good journalism had in bringing down unjust political powerhouses and unnecessary fear-mongering. 

Clooney definitely got his money's worth though as the film was nominated for six Academy Awards the following year.

Hilary Swank

Paid: $3,000 for Boys Don't Cry.

Hilary Swank in Boys Don't Cry. Image: Fox Searchlight Pictures.

Swank may have won an Oscar for her leading position in Boys Don't Cry but she only took a measly $3,000 home for the role.

"I made $3,000. In order to have health insurance, you have to make $5,000," the actor admitted on the Netflix talk show Chelsea. "So I didn't even know that I didn't have health insurance until I went and tried to get a prescription filled."

"They said, 'That's $160.' I went, 'Um, did you try my insurance?' They said, 'Mmm-hmm.' I had an Academy Award, no health insurance."

Jamie Lee Curtis

Paid: $8,000 for Halloween.

Jamie Lee Curtis in Halloween. Image: Compass International Pictures.

Back in the 70s, Jamie Lee Curtis had earned the name 'Scream Queen' for having a long list of horror films on her resumé. 

And while she may have been part of the cult-classic franchise that is Halloween, she didn't make much from it. 

"I made $8,000," Curtis told People in 2018. "I made $2,000 a week, which at the time was a fortune."

She had a $200 budget for her wardrobe and admitted that she actually bought her costume for the movie at the American department story, JCPenney. 

Miles Teller 

Paid: $8,000 for Whiplash.

Miles Teller in Whiplash. Image: Sony Pictures Classics.

Whiplash was a small Indie movie that was filmed in 20 days with a $3 million budget. Eventually, it went on to be nominated for a number of Oscars. 

And while it was a hit in the eyes of many, the film didn't actually line the pockets of its star, Miles Teller. 

He made exactly $8,000 to act in the movie, but it gave him something worth more than in the long run: credibility. 

Soon after Whiplash was released in 2014, he moved on to starring in the Divergent films and his most recent work includes landing a role in Top Gun: Maverick, where he worked alongside Tom Cruise.

Oprah Winfrey

Paid: $35,000 for The Color Purple. 

Oprah Winfrey in The Color Purple. Image: Getty.

Oprah Winfrey is not only a billionaire and award-winning talk show host, but a successful actor as well. 

She earned just $35,000 for her emotionally charged role in The Color Purple but was terrified she was going to be fired from the set. 

"There was another movie... where somebody had recently been fired, and it had never occurred to me that you could be fired from a movie. But I did know that if there was anybody who could be fired, it would be me, because I didn't know what I was doing. Period," Winfrey told the LA Times in 2017. 

The movie earned her a best-supporting actress nomination at the 1986 Academy Awards.

Jonah Hill 

Paid: $60,000 for The Wolf Of Wall Street.

Jonah Hill in Wolf of Wall Street. Image: Paramount Pictures,

Jonah Hill got the opportunity of a lifetime when he landed the role of Donnie Azoff on The Wolf Of Wall Street. 

Except it wasn't the fact he'd be rubbing shoulders with Leonardo DiCaprio or Margot Robbie that got him excited about being included – instead it was having the opportunity to work with director Martin Scorsese. 

As a result, Hill accepted $60,000 to be in the film – and he says he would do it all over again.

"That was their offer and I said, 'I will sign the paper tonight,'" Hill told The Howard Stern Show in 2014. "'Fax them the papers tonight. I want to sign them tonight before they change their mind. I want to sign them before I go to sleep tonight so they legally can't change their mind.'"

Hill was nominated for Best Supporting Actor at the 2014 Academy Awards for his work in the Wolf Of Wall Street.

Cameron Diaz

Paid: $42 million for Bad Teacher.

Cameron Diaz in Bad Teacher. Image: Columbia Pictures.

Believe it or not, Diaz was only handed $1 million for her leading role in Bad Teacher but scored an extra $41 million as she cut a deal that said she would get a sizeable portion of the Box Office earnings. 

To this day, the deal is considered to be one of the most "legendary" in Hollywood history.

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Sandra Bullock

Paid: $70 million for Gravity.

Sandra Bullock in Gravity. Image: Warner Bros Pictures.

Sandra Bullock is regarded as one of the most successful female actors in modern history and her massive payday from her work in Gravity proves it. 

After signing on for $20 million, Bullock made a deal that stated she would also receive 15 per cent of the Box Office revenue. 

The film made $723 million worldwide and as a result, Bullock secured at least $70 million in revenue.

Will Smith

$100 million for Men In Black 3.

Will Smith and Tommy Lee in Men In Black 3. Image: Columbia Pictures.

Feature Image: Warner Bros Pictures / Columbia Pictures / STXFilms.