Rebel Wilson was 30 when she starred in the hit comedy Bridesmaids.
Lisa Maree Williams / Getty ImagesRebel portrayed Brynn — roommate of protagonist Annie — in the Judd Apatow-produced film, which starred the likes of Kristen Wiig and Melissa McCarthy.
Prime VideoOf course, Rebel’s role in Bridesmaids opened up doors for her into bigger comedy roles, with the actor most known for going on to star as “Fat Amy” in the Pitch Perfect franchise.
Netflix
Directed by Jason Moore, the first Pitch Perfect film was released in 2012 — a year after Bridesmaids. It was a huge success, grossing $115 million worldwide on a $17 million budget, and went on to receive two sequels.
Now reflecting on her role in the musical comedy in her newly released memoir, Rebel has revealed the stark difference between what she was paid for Bridesmaids and the final Pitch Perfect movie.
Amanda Edwards / WireImageTo begin, the actor recalls moving from Australia to the US to become — in her words — “the female Jonah Hill.”
Theo Wargo / Getty Images for NBCSpeaking of Bridesmaids, Rebel describes her breakthrough role as her “first opportunity in Hollywood that changed the trajectory” of her career.
Prime VideoRebel goes on to reveal that she was paid just $3,500 for her role in Bridesmaids. However, she writes that this “didn’t matter” to her because she could join the SAG-AFTRA union and keep making movies in the US.
Gregg Deguire / FilmMagicRebel recalls booking six movie roles within weeks of Bridesmaids’s premiere — one being Pitch Perfect. “Boy, did that movie pay dividends!” she writes.
NetflixRebel purportedly notes that she was paid $65,000 for her first Pitch Perfect movie role. By the time the third movie rolled around, the franchise had catapulted into global superstardom, with the actor noting that the producers initially sought to replace the original cast members — including Anna Kendrick, Brittany Snow, and Anna Camp.
Lester Cohen / WireImageRebel claims that the producers deemed herself and the other original cast members too “old” for the third film and instead planned on having actor Hailee Steinfeld — whose character was first introduced in Pitch Perfect 2 — lead a new crew of “Barden Bella” singers.
Stefanie Keenan / Getty Images”None of us original Bellas were happy about this,” Rebel writes before revealing that she used the vast success of the second film to negotiate a much higher salary.
Karwai Tang / WireImage”Cue the big bucks,” she writes, revealing that she was paid $10 million.
Alberto Rodriguez / Variety via Getty Images”To receive an eight-figure offer, for a woman, is huge. Sometimes women don’t like to talk about that. Whereas I don’t think the guys have any issues saying they get $20 million a movie,” Rebel continues
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