George Clooney’s Salary for Batman & Robin Revealed, and It’s Ridiculously Miniscule
George Clooney is one of the biggest names in the industry. Yet, even he has his share of regrets.
It was the year 1997, and Joel Schumacher directed the fourth installment of the Batman franchise, Batman & Robin, starring George Clooney and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The movie was a total box office flop – with a budget of $160 million, it only grossed $238 million.
Batman & Robin wasn’t loved by critics or audiences either (even Sheldon Cooper from The Big Bang Theory hated it so much that he added the director to his mortal enemies’ list). George Clooney’s career took a hit because of his involvement in the movie as well.
Even 20 years later, the star still remembers his experience with pain in his voice. In 2020, Clooney went on The Howard Stern Show to talk about this flop of a movie.
He believes that Batman & Robin is “so bad that it actually hurts to watch,” admitting that he always flips the channel when the film pops up on his TV.
Ben Affleck once asked George for advice when he was offered the role of Batman, and Clooney didn’t hesitate for a second – he told Affleck not to go near the franchise. Of course, the actor didn’t listen, and it was for the best. His Batman is one of the most beloved characters to date!
Clooney further revealed that his co-star, Arnold Schwarzenegger, who portrayed Mr. Freeze, earned $25 million for Batman & Robin, while George only took home a little over $1 million (despite playing the lead role).
Seems unfair, if you ask us. No wonder Clooney sounds bitter about the whole thing.
In another interview for The Hollywood Reporter, the star shared that he was blamed for the movie itself. The critics hated Batman & Robin, but it was Clooney who “took all the heat.”
The actor acknowledged that the movie was “a failure.” Yet he learned something from the experience: George had to “rethink” his whole approach to acting, and whatever he did end up doing worked out great.
In any case, George Clooney went on to have a successful career that spans decades, and he has become one of the most influential voices in Hollywood.