How much did ‘The Hobbit’ actors make?

The Lord of the Rings trilogy and its mounting offshoots will never go out of style, but it seems each step we take away from that gorgeous original trio takes us farther from god. 

Or, in this case, J.R.R. Tolkien. While more recent attempts at Middle Earth like The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power work hard to pay homage to the man who forever reshaped fantasy, they just keep missing the mark. Hopes are high that the second season of Amazon’s prequel series will see an improvement, but as it stands it seems the more recent a project, the less likely it is to be of quality. 

Which actually puts The Hobbit trilogy in good territory. It was just the second attempt at a LOTR project — aside from several video games — and while it was far from perfect, it was solid. It hit most of the moments beloved by book-lovers, it was fun and engaging, and it had heart. It was also a bit too much, all around, and leaned too hard on gaffes and silly asides, but audiences none-the-less remember the Hobbit films fondly.

Only time will tell if future LOTR projects, from season 2 of Rings of Power to the incoming War of the Rohirrim will likewise stand the testament of time, but one thing is assured — whether or not they were happy with the final product, the Hobbit actors weren’t paid nearly enough for their time. 

How much did the Hobbit actors make?

There’s shockingly little information out there on just how well the Hobbit stars were paid for their time. Various rumors indicate that, much like the original trilogy, the cast that signed onto the Hobbit was vastly underpaid, particularly when the massive returns of the films are considered. At least a few of them reportedly negotiated a reasonable paycheck, thankfully, but many of their peers weren’t so lucky.

Pretty much every actor who participated in the Hobbit trilogy received a different salary, much like those involved in the original Lord of the Rings trilogy. As expected, the film’s leading stars — the likes of Martin Freeman, Ian McKellen, and Richard Armitage — made significantly more than their co-stars, with rumors claiming McKellen made as much as $3 million per film for his return to Middle Earth.

There’s exceedingly little reporting on the exact salaries pulled in by other members of the cast. Freeman reportedly pulled in the same $3 million for his first stint as Bilbo Baggins, before negotiating a higher paycheck for his two returns to the franchise, as did Armitage. 

But as for the stacked supporting cast, which includes the likes of Benedict Cumberbatch, Evangeline Lilly, and Stephen Fry? That’s still unclear. While each of these stars, and plenty more, joined the cast with plenty of experience already under their belts, it seems they — like Orlando Bloom in the original trilogy — were happy to accept lower salaries than normal to be involved in the project. 

That’s assumed to be particularly true for the lineup of stars who played the Dwarves — grueling roles, what with the heavy demand for makeup and costumes — whom many people assumed were thoroughly cheated where pay is concerned. They haven’t revealed much regarding their pay for the flicks, but most fans assume they made out like the cast of the original trilogy, and were robbed of the compensation they deserved.