Theres no shame in taking a job just because you need or want the paycheck. Even people in creative fields cant make every career decision based on what theyre most passionate about.
Here are 17 actors who admitted to only taking a role for the paycheck:
At the "Shazam! Fury of the Gods" premiere, Rachel Zegler told the Hollywood Reporter that she accepted the role of Anthea because she "needed a job."
Warner Bros. / Courtesy Everett Collection
After living large off the success of "Parents Just Don't Understand," Will Smith found himself broke when his next album flopped. He also didn't pay his taxes, so the IRS took a lot of his expensive cars and such. His then-girlfriend encouraged him to network at "The Arsenio Hall Show," where he met Benny Medina, who pitched him the idea for "The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air."
NBC / Courtesy: Everett Collection
According to director/co-writer Jerry Zucker, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (who's an avid rug collector) was originally offered $30,000 to play First Officer Roger Murdock in "Airplane!" However, his agent countered $35,000 because it would cover the cost of a fancy rug that Kareem wanted to buy.
Paramount / courtesy Everett Collection
Before his original MCU character, the AI voice Jarvis, evolved into Vision, Paul Bettany felt "like a pirate" or a robber while recording his lines for the "Iron Man" movies because he'd "walk in, [then] say some lines on a piece of paper for two hours, and then they [gave him] a bag of money." At that point, he hadn't even seen any of his own Marvel movies.
Marvel / Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection
Amanda Seyfried took the role of Sophie Hall in "Letters to Juliet" because "sometimes, when you want to buy an apartment in Manhattan, you gotta do one or two [romantic comedies]."
John P. Johnson/Summit Entertainment/Courtesy Everett Collection
Billy Bob Thornton played Dan Truman in "Armageddon" because he "had to pay off a divorce."
Walt Disney Co./Courtesy Everett Collection
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Glenn Close played Irani Rael in "Guardians of the Galaxy" because it would "afford [her] to go do the other kind of movies that [she] really love[s]."
Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection
Even after winning her Oscar for "Monster's Ball," Halle Berry faced a lack of opportunities compared to her white peers. She still had to accept certain roles out of financial necessity rather than passion because acting is "how [she takes] care of [her] children."
Sony Pictures / courtesy Everett Collection
Bella Thorne "didn't want to audition for 'Shake It Up!,'" but her family was "about to live physically on the street if [she] didn't have that role."
Craig Sjodin / Disney Channel via Getty Images
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When Michael Caine, who played Hoagie Newcombe, was asked if he'd ever seen "Jaws: The Revenge," he replied, "No. But I've seen the house it bought for my mum."
Universal/Courtesy Everett Collection
Tim Roth played Sepp Blatter in "United Passions" because he "had two kids in college, so [he] had to make a decision, and it was probably poorly judged, but once you make that decision, you have to follow through."
When Stephen Dillane played Stannis Baratheon on "Game of Thrones," "money is the main thing [he] got out of it."
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Morgan Freeman chalked his "Ted 2" role, Patrick Meighan, up to "earning a living."
Eddie Murphy initially turned down the role of Lieutenant T.M. Landry in "Best Defense," but he decided to accept it when Paramount "finally came back with an offer of a million dollars for something like a couple weeks' work."
Paramount/courtesy Everett
On the "Inchon" set, Laurence Olivier, who spent a lot of time during filming on bedrest because of his arthritis, was mainly motivated to play General Douglas MacArthur so he'd have money for his family to inherit. At one point, he reportedly refused to come out of his tent until a briefcase containing $250,000 in cash was delivered via helicopter.
MGM/UA Entertainment Co. courtesy Everett Collection
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Jackie Chan, who played Chief Inspector Lee, said that "there was no reason [in making 'Rush Hour'], you just give [him] the money, and [he's] fine."
New Line / courtesy Everett Collection
And finally, after wrapping Spectre, Daniel Craig was so burnt out on playing James Bond that "if [he] did another Bond movie, it would only be for the money." Six years later, he did "No Time to Die."
Nicola Dove / MGM / Danjaq / Courtesy Everett Collection