How Much The Santa Clause’s David Krumholtz Really Makes From Movie

by

David Krumholtz doesn’t get the same excited feeling he used to when he receives royalty payments from the movie The Santa Clause.

The 48-year-old explained how much money he continues to earn from the popular 1994 holiday movie featuring Tim Allen, even thirty years after its release.

David explained to Page Six that the residual payments he received were small because the film was shown so often. He described how residuals are calculated – the more a movie airs, the less each payment is, and it’s based on a tiered system.

David Krumholtz, known for his roles in Numb3rs and as Bernard the Elf in The Santa Clause movies, mentioned that he initially earned a good income from the films, but now receives around $150 a year in residuals.

David shared that he’s currently earning the most residuals from the 2023 film Oppenheimer. At first, he was hesitant to say exactly how much he’s making from the hit movie directed by Christopher Nolan.

“That’s none of your business!” he said. “What kind of question is that?”

David finally gave in, saying, “It’s $12.73 – enough to get a hot dog in New York.”

Recently, the actor known for playing Supergirl has been talking about residuals – the payments actors receive after a show or movie is released. This conversation is happening more and more in Hollywood, with many actors sharing their experiences. For example, his former co-star in 10 Things I Hate About You, Andrew Keegan, just revealed how much he continues to earn from the 1999 film.

The actor, known for roles in shows like Party of Five and Full House, recently mentioned on The McBride Rewind podcast that he still receives small residual payments – often around $10 to $80 – from 10 Things I Hate About You. He considers those payments to be the most significant he continues to receive from past projects.

He explained that the payments he still receives from past projects are often quite small.

He shared that he sometimes receives checks for just one penny. It actually costs more – around 40 cents – to cash them by mail.

Keep reading to find out what more stars have made from their acting gigs over the years…

Jennifer Lawrence, an Academy Award winner, earned $25 million for her role in Adam McKay’s comedy film Don’t Look Up. However, her co-star, Leonardo DiCaprio – also an Oscar winner – received $30 million for the same film.

In an interview with Vanity Fair, Jennifer Lawrence acknowledged that Leonardo DiCaprio generally earns more at the box office than she does. While she’s happy with her own earnings, she described how uncomfortable it can be for women to ask for equal pay. She’s observed that when discrepancies are questioned, explanations are often vague and avoid directly addressing potential gender bias.

Jennifer Lawrence’s optimistic outlook came after a difficult battle: The 2014 Sony email leak revealed she was paid less than her male colleagues in the 2013 film American Hustle, sparking a widespread discussion about unequal pay for women in Hollywood.

In a 2017 interview with Channel 4 News, Lawrence explained she wasn’t worried about her income. ‘I’m lucky to have the job I do,’ she said. ‘It wasn’t about the money – getting ‘only’ millions for a film isn’t what bothered me. I was upset by the injustice and the gap between how different people are treated.’

Compared to Leonardo DiCaprio’s earnings, Jonah Hill received a relatively small $60,000 for his work in the 2013 film The Wolf of Wall Street – before taxes and commissions. This is significantly less than the $10 million earned by the lead actor.

Hill remembered being offered very little money on The Howard Stern Show in 2014. However, the opportunity to be in a film directed by Martin Scorsese was too good to pass up, so he quickly agreed to the deal before anyone could reconsider.

Hill, a two-time Best Supporting Actor nominee known for playing a frantic, drug-using stockbroker, said he’d be willing to sacrifice everything to work with director Martin Scorsese. He explained that while films like 22 Jump Street help pay the bills, true fulfillment comes from passion projects. “I’d sell my house and give him all my money,” he said, adding that he’d gladly do it again and that meaningful work isn’t about the money – it’s about doing something you believe in.

Although the winner of Dancing With the Stars doesn’t receive a cash prize, everyone who reaches the finale does get paid, according to season 33 champion Jenna Johnson. She also mentioned that finalists receive a bonus on top of their regular pay. She won with her partner, Joey Graziadei.

Johnson explained that winning doesn’t come with a huge payout—it’s more about the trophy. And while dancers are guaranteed a paycheck for a certain number of weeks, professional contracts depend on how long they stay in the competition. Reports indicate dancers earn between $1,200 and $1,600 per episode, potentially reaching $100,000 for the entire season, though ABC hasn’t confirmed these figures. Celebrities, on the other hand, start at a $125,000 salary, with bonuses awarded as they progress. Semifinalists and finalists can earn an additional $50,000.

The actress hinted that the main cast of Friends – including Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox, David Schwimmer, and Matt LeBlanc – each earn around $20 million annually from the show’s continued broadcasts. She jokingly suggested to The Times in April 2026 that the reason for this is simply “Because Phoebe Buffay was so great!”

But in actuality, she praised the talents of her costars for their performances.

I thought my performance was decent, but Jennifer and Courteney were incredible! David and Matt had me in stitches, and Matthew—well, he was in a league of his own.

According to Joe Giudice, he and his ex-wife Teresa Giudice didn’t make much money during the first season of The Real Housewives of New Jersey. He said on his daughter Gia’s Casual Chaos podcast in August 2025 that they earned around $25,000, which he considered very little, but they accepted it.

Creating the first season of the show wasn’t inexpensive. The father of four recalled, “I remember that big party we threw in my living room cost me around $150,000 just for the first year.”

Oprah Winfrey happily accepted only a little bit of green to star in 1985’s The Color Purple.

In a 2023 interview with Essence, the media billionaire said they were offered just $35,000 for the film, but it turned out to be the most valuable $35,000 they ever made. They explained that the experience was transformative and taught them a great deal.

Jennifer Lopez made history when she played the late Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla in the 1997 movie Selena. She was the first Latina actress to be paid $1 million for a film role.

Looking back on her first big film, Lopez explained to Variety in 2019 that she was very young and didn’t fully understand what was happening. She was thrilled they offered her a million dollars and believes everyone involved was trying to prove a point.

This success allowed her to earn hundreds of millions of dollars more, and often she doesn’t even have to invest any money of her own.

Jennifer Lopez told GQ in 2019 that she follows her passions. She explained she wasn’t motivated by money when making Hustlers, even producing it without pay. She believes in herself and does what she loves, just like in her song Jenny From the Block.

Adrien Brody wasn’t motivated by money when he accepted the role in The Brutalist. He chose to play a Hungarian architect struggling with his work in post-World War II America, a role that ultimately earned him his second Best Actor Oscar, despite a salary of only $250,000.

Brody told Variety he’s ready for a big studio film, joking that he’s put all his resources into renovating a large, castle-like barn in upstate New York.

When asked how he spent his first paycheck from Saturday Night Live, Pete Davidson joked to New York magazine, “Do you know how much we make?” He explained that he earned around $3,000 per episode when he started in 2014, adding, “So I think I just bought dinner.”

It’s notable that pay for new cast members on Saturday Night Live has stayed consistent over the years. In 1975, the original stars – John Belushi, Jane Curtin, Gilda Radner, Dan Aykroyd, and Chevy Chase – each earned $750 per episode. Adjusting for inflation, that’s about $3,300 in 2014, and roughly $4,428 in 2025.

Kenan Thompson earns significantly more than $3,000 per episode of SNL these days, especially as he begins his 22nd season on the show. However, he didn’t always make that much and had to start with more modest earnings earlier in his career.

In Demi Lovato’s 2024 documentary, Child Star, a former cast member of All That shared that their first paycheck was $800. They joked that, being 12 at the time, it felt like a million dollars.

It turns out Gilmore Girls’ status as a beloved rewatchable classic is literally priceless.

Lauren Graham, best known for playing Lorelai Gilmore in the original seven seasons of Gilmore Girls and its 2016 revival Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, recently shared that she doesn’t receive any royalties from Netflix. Speaking on Jimmy Kimmel Live in March 2025, she jokingly said she’s been compensated with ‘love and appreciation’ instead.

During the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, Tommy Dorfman revealed details about her pay for the show 13 Reasons Why. The strike, like the WGA strike, was largely due to streaming services such as Netflix not typically offering extra pay to actors and crew even after a show became very popular.

Dorfman revealed on Threads on July 24th that she earned $29,953.24 for the first season of 13 Reasons Why before her agency, manager (a combined 20% fee), and taxes were taken out. She worked on 8 episodes over six months, doing all the promotion and appearing in key promotional artwork. She also flew roundtrip from New York City to San Francisco to film each episode, often working for days without pay and barely qualifying for health insurance.

Dorfman also noted that the show’s first season quickly became popular, racking up 476 million hours of viewing within the first 28 days – a key reason for the strike.

Dax Shepard recently shared with Lauren Graham, a former co-star on their show Parenthood, that he was one of the lowest-paid actors on the NBC drama during its six-season run. He didn’t mention specific salaries or co-stars’ names.

But, the Armchair Expert host stressed that he did not mind.

Before becoming a parent, I always made it a priority to find out how much my coworkers were earning. I’d either ask them directly or discreetly check with my agent to get the information.

He deliberately avoided finding out details about his family’s history with the company, and that helped him enjoy his work even when he started to realize how much he was being paid compared to others.

In 2005, George Clooney told the Los Angeles Times that he and Grant Heslov each only made a dollar from their film, Good Night, and Good Luck. Clooney explained that to get the movie made, he had to cash his directing check and forgo his acting salary, while Heslov did the same. They essentially worked for a symbolic payment of one dollar each.

George Clooney’s passionate portrayal of CBS News journalist Edward R. Murrow, a figure known for bravely speaking truth to power in the 1950s, proved highly successful. He made his Broadway debut playing Murrow in a stage adaptation of the film, concluding his run in June 2025. The play generated a remarkable $3.3 million during previews—a Broadway record for a non-musical—before its official opening on April 3rd, proving to be a significant financial success.

Christian Bale revealed in a 2022 interview with GQ that he earned very little for his role as Patrick Bateman in the 2000 film American Psycho. He said he was paid the lowest amount legally possible because the production team wasn’t initially enthusiastic about casting him, with director Mary Harron being his main advocate.

Bale recalled earning so little during one job that the makeup artists on set actually laughed at him, as he was being paid less than they were.

No, the Game of Thrones cast didn’t get paid $300,000 per episode, according to Emilia Clarke.

In a 2026 interview with Variety, she revealed they didn’t make a lot of money. She joked, “I could have been driving a couple of Porsches if we had!”

The actress, best known for her role as Daenerys Targaryen on HBO from 2011 to 2019, shared that her earnings from the show allowed her to pay off her parents’ home loan.

Although his uncle was Rico, Jon Heder revealed in 2010 that he originally earned just $1,000 for his work in Napoleon Dynamite.

Once the unexpectedly successful comedy took off, he successfully asked for a share of the earnings. He told the New Zealand Herald that his request resulted in a better deal, saying, “They went a little bit higher.”

Despite a successful career with acclaimed films like Amistad and Blood Diamond, Djimon Hounsou believes he doesn’t earn enough money in Hollywood.

The Beninese actor shared with CNN’s Larry Madowo in January 2025 that despite working in film for over twenty years—and having received two Oscar nominations and appeared in numerous blockbuster movies—he still finds it difficult to make ends meet.

Oh my gosh, I just finished Rebel Wilson’s memoir, Rebel Rising, and I was absolutely floored! She revealed that she was paid only $3,500 for Bridesmaids – can you believe it?! But get this, she had to pay the entire amount to the Screen Actors Guild just to join the union! So basically, she worked on Bridesmaids and didn’t actually earn any money! It’s insane! It just makes me admire her even more, honestly. She’s a legend!

Still, she wrote, the experience was “everything!”

The Australian actress’s career soared, and her salary increased dramatically. She earned the standard union rate of $65,000 for the 2012 film Pitch Perfect, but by 2017’s Pitch Perfect 3, she was making $10 million. In total, she earned $20 million from Pitch Perfect 3, Isn’t It Romantic, and The Hustle. However, after paying nearly 50% in taxes, 10% to her agents, and 5% to her lawyer, plus covering the costs of her publicist, business manager, and assistant, she still considered her earnings a huge success.

In late 2017, Ellen Pompeo successfully negotiated a new contract for her role on Grey’s Anatomy. The deal paid her $575,000 per episode, included a large signing bonus, and gave her a share of the show’s profits estimated to be worth between $6 and $7 million.

In a 2018 interview with The Hollywood Reporter, 48-year-old Pompeo explained that she’s reached a point in her career where she confidently asks for fair compensation. She believes this self-assurance comes with experience. Pompeo acknowledged that, after playing the same character for 14 years, she isn’t necessarily seen as the most ‘in-demand’ actress. However, she argued that while many can perform well during a show’s first couple of seasons, maintaining that quality after fourteen years demonstrates real talent.

Ellen Pompeo recently thought about the fact that she consistently earned less than her “Grey’s Anatomy” costar, Patrick Dempsey, despite being the show’s central character. However, she says she doesn’t resent him for it.

In a March 2025 episode of her podcast, Call Her Daddy, she explained that she felt she deserved equal recognition, considering the show was named after her. She wasn’t upset that someone else received success, but rather that her contributions weren’t valued as much, and she believed that would always be the case.

As someone who’s followed Hollywood for years, it’s always fascinating to hear about early career paydays! I recently remembered Jamie Lee Curtis talking about her very first film, the original Halloween back in 1978. She earned $2,000 a week, which totaled $8,000 for the whole movie. And honestly, she said it was a lot for that time – basically, nobody was getting rich back then! It really puts things into perspective, doesn’t it?

Although the actress playing Laurie Strode made a good amount of money—around four figures—director John Carpenter’s friend, Nick Castle, felt like he was living large earning $25 a day for sharing the role of Michael Myers. (Actually, Anthony Moran is the face you briefly see under the mask, and editor Tommy Lee Wallace also appeared on screen as the killer.)

Looking back, it was a really intense time,” said Castle, who went to film school with Carpenter at USC. He explained to Vanity Fair in 2018 that he was mainly interested in being on set to learn how movies are made and to get a behind-the-scenes look at directing. “I thought I’d be working for free,” he said, “but I ended up making $25 a day just for wearing a rubber mask!”

Taraji P. Henson received an Oscar nomination for her supporting role in the 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. However, she was still frustrated years later that she only earned $150,000 for the movie, despite initially requesting $500,000.

In a 2021 interview on the Ladies First With Laura Brown podcast, producer Dede Henson explained that Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett each earned around $20 million for the film. She noted that large salaries like that were common at the time and that both actors deserved the compensation they received.

She explained that she was also bringing value to the project and felt her salary request was reasonable, considering how much the film would likely earn from ticket sales. She wouldn’t have accepted anything less. Taraji P. Henson said she was very disappointed when they initially offered her only $100,000. Ultimately, she ended up with $150,000, but she admitted it was difficult to accept less than she felt she deserved.

Henson understands some people might think $150,000 is a lot of money, but she wants to clarify how much she actually keeps after taxes and expenses. She explained that after the government takes its 50% share, she’s left with $75,000. Then, she has to pay her team 30% of the original amount before taxes are taken out. So, after both Uncle Sam and her team take their cuts, she estimates she might only have around $40,000 left.

Cate Blanchett has earned a significant income throughout her career, but her role as the elf Galadriel in the hugely successful The Lord of the Rings films – which made $2.9 billion worldwide – wasn’t her sole source of income.

I nearly lost it when she said that on Watch What Happens Live last August! Andy Cohen was asking about her biggest paycheck, and he guessed Lord of the Rings, and she just completely shut it down! She said absolutely no one got paid for that movie – can you believe it?! She joked she basically got paid in free sandwiches and got to keep her elf ears! It’s amazing, honestly. She’s so real, and I’m obsessed with everything about that story!

Orlando Bloom, known for his role as Legolas in The Lord of the Rings trilogy, revealed on The Howard Stern Show in 2023 that he earned only $175,000 for all three films – a surprisingly small amount.

Hopefully he also got to keep his ears.

Read More

2026-06-05 17:22