Was Angelina Jolie Worth Her 'Salt' Paycheck?

Which explains why the action-packed film grossed an impressive (but not enough to top 'Inception') $36.5 million at the box office.

"Angie earned every cent of her $20 million salary," a Sony Pictures insider tells me. "Even though Angelina's contract insists she promote the film, no one expected her to sign autographs at the premiere for over 45 minutes, pose for pictures with fans and shake hands before walking the red carpet. Even partner Brad Pitt looked confused watching her spend so much time with all the fans."

And her dedication and work ethic didn't stop there in her drive to promote the flick.

"The studio was shocked when Angie agreed to go to Comic-Con [the largest comic book and popular arts convention in the world] as well as when she traveled to Washington, D.C. to host a reception and tour of the International Spy Museum. Angie even allowed studio publicists to plant stories about her inviting the real-life Russian sleeper spy, Anna Chapman, to the premiere, to help promote 'Salt.'"

However, no one should really have been surprised. After all, this is a superstar who knows better than any star alive today how to sell a product. Paul Dergarabedian, box office president of Hollywood.com, explains to me, "With 'Salt' becoming her 'Bourne Identity,' Angelina Jolie proves that she may be the most bankable female star in Hollywood."

New York Daily News film critic Joe Neumaier, whose quotes appear in 'Salt' newspaper ads, tells me, "I think 'Angie, Inc' has been a brand name perfectly run by Jolie since the late '90s. Since hitting the pop culture map with HBO's biopic 'Gia' and her Oscar-winning turn in 'Girl, Interrupted,' Jolie hasn't worried about box office numbers. Yet she's had hits with action flicks of low and high-caliber -- playing women ranging from Lara Croft to Mrs. Smith -- and starred in dramas that made full use of those great pouty lips, such as 'A Mighty Heart' and 'Changeling.' Yet 'Salt' combines the best of both worlds: As double agent Evelyn Salt, Jolie makes us care about the character while, at the same time, we totally buy her spy-jinks. Fans of both genres can root for her -- which explains why 'Salt's' audience was almost perfectly split between men and women."

Neumaier also told me that when he was interviewing Jolie in 2004 she got up to get a coffee and offered to get him some breakfast from the buffet table.

It's nice to know that breakfast is included for $20 million.

basically Angie got PAID!!!!!

can't wait to see this one.

Well... for $20Mill. I'd be signin' hands and shakin' the babies too...

not like she has much better to do, the least she could do is provide a good ROI. That way she stays bankable (and relevant) for future projects...

I'll wait for the torrent though...

RenHoek said:

Well... for $20Mill. I'd be signin' hands and shakin' the babies too...

not like she has much better to do, the least she could do is provide a good ROI. That way she stays bankable (and relevant) for future projects...

I'll wait for the torrent though...

I had the lowest of the low expectations going in to this film. I really didn't want to see, but the girlfriend did and it was her birthday. She put on a helluva performance though the movie was just pure entertianment.

I have to say I enjoyed much more than I thought I would have.

Still don't like her lips.

Spinzilla said:

I had the lowest of the low expectations going in to this film. I really didn't want to see, but the girlfriend did and it was her birthday. She put on a helluva performance though the movie was just pure entertianment.

I have to say I enjoyed much more than I thought I would have.

Still don't like her lips.

that's another reason i love Angelina. even if the movie is bland, you know the woman is STILL going to give a stellar performance.

you don't like her lips?! fine....more for me!

salt was badass but i kinda knew the storyline..

very predicable

you know, i admire Jolie and her work greatly. love the way she plays strong female characters. love her charitable efforts.

BUT i think she is hugely overpaid. high school teachers contribute far more that is truly important than do hollywood actresses.

so in my opinion, no. she was not worth her 20$ million paycheck.

Considering the business she's in, yes!

XxAxX said:

you know, i admire Jolie and her work greatly. love the way she plays strong female characters. love her charitable efforts.

BUT i think she is hugely overpaid. high school teachers contribute far more that is truly important than do hollywood actresses.

so in my opinion, no. she was not worth her 20$ million paycheck.

XxAxX said:

you know, i admire Jolie and her work greatly. love the way she plays strong female characters. love her charitable efforts.

BUT i think she is hugely overpaid. high school teachers contribute far more that is truly important than do hollywood actresses.

so in my opinion, no. she was not worth her 20$ million paycheck.

But that's just the way the market works...if they invest 20 million in Angelina, will they get it back?

Altough i never saw Angelina as this huge money making actress.

i never gave a damn about her never watched any of her movies never seen what anybody see in her she in my eyes is nothing 20 million for what ??? u can cut teachers jobs and yet come up with money 2 pay this wench?? ok i get 2 hell with education so salty

She sure did. And she justified why she should be paid $22 million for her next "Salt" movie.

XxAxX said:

you know, i admire Jolie and her work greatly. love the way she plays strong female characters. love her charitable efforts.

BUT i think she is hugely overpaid. high school teachers contribute far more that is truly important than do hollywood actresses.

so in my opinion, no. she was not worth her 20$ million paycheck.

Schoolteachers work for the government; actresses work in the free market.

I agree with you on the contributions, but to pay teachers on a Jolie Scale would mean unbelievable local tax hikes.

Jolie's salary was justified by those who paid it based upon how much product she could move for them. They felt she'd sell X times $20 million worth of tickets and merchandise, so they agreed to pay her that fee.

I think teachers' salaries are driven by the desire to have the most affordable-yet-high-quality education we can give our kids. Sadly, this doesn't take into account what a teacher gets for this service. It's more a function of what kind of education our kids get for the money.

Big Whoop.

She's not doing anything less than the Bette Davises, Joan Crawfords, and Judy Garlands would have done back in their day to sell the studio's product. The only thing remarkable about this is seeing how inflation has hit Hollywood and how more actresses can finally run neck & neck financially with their male counterparts. Julia Roberts already broke the glass ceiling for females with the 20 mill paycheck a decade ago, so all I can say is "hoorah, we have another one!" Get paid girl, you're going to have alot of grandkids one day and lawd knows how much school tuition will be part of your future