You’ve got to spend money to make money, and no one knows that better than Rebel Wilson.
With the release of her memoir Rebel Rising last month, we found out that the Aussie native made a measly $3,500 for her brief yet unforgettable role in the 2011 Paul Feig-directed comedy Bridesmaids, which stars Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne, Melissa McCarthy, and others. That may sound like a lot — but not when you factor in the costs of being in the movie! Let Rebel explain…
The Senior Year star appeared on The Diary of a CEO podcast on Monday and opened up about her humble beginnings in Hollywood:
“That was my first job in America and, I mean, I was very lucky to get it, I mean, what an awesome cracker of a movie to get that.”
Seriously! What an iconic way to be introduced to mainstream US audiences! But her check from the cult-classic comedy didn’t stretch far. She recalled:
“But to be paid so little, and basically that $3,500 I then had to pay to the [SAG-AFTRA] union to join the union. So I basically made no money.”
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Oof… And on top of that, part of the payoff of the movie was getting her name out there, and that meant going to the premiere. So a year after she shot the movie, she had to buy a dress for the occasion — which set her back even further! The 44-year-old remembered:
“I lost money because I had to pay to go to the premiere, like, to buy my dress and everything. So, I lost money doing Bridesmaids.”
OMFG! Well, at least she looked great, right??
She explained how the year between filming the movie and its release was “skint” as she was living on “$60 a week in LA.” That is NOT a lot, y’all! So don’t get the impression she was partying it up or living “the Hollywood life” at all. She said:
“It was basically just having that focus trying to write for myself, going to auditions, and I had to wait a whole year until Bridesmaids came out, and then suddenly it comes out and it’s this big hit.”
Of course, because of how popular it became and how great she was in it, she was finally able to book a TON of more work:
“I book[ed] six movies off the back of it — one of which was Pitch Perfect, which was kind of my real golden ticket.”
And we know how much she made from that franchise! What a whirlwind few years for her! Watch her full podcast episode (below):
Thoughts, Perezicous readers? What’s YOUR favorite Rebel role? Let us know down in the comments!
[Images via The Diary of a CEO/YouTube & Universal Pictures/Peacock]