Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson have been huge contributors to the success of the MCU. Nevertheless, “Avengers: Age of Ultron” was almost the end of the Marvel adventure for the duo if their co-avenger Robert Downey Jr. had not intervened…
When it came, in 2008, after the massive success of Iron Man, to expand the standalone superhero blockbuster into a mega-franchise, Marvel officials made it clear from the outset that they would not hesitate. not to dismiss the actors if some began to make demands – salary in particular – too high.
The feuds that followed as the filming of Avengers: Age of Ultron approached were particularly heated so that Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson were on the verge of being fired if Iron Man himself was not. not intervened.
As Espinof and FilmStarts report, the reason for the conflict was that Marvel didn’t pay its actors very well at the start of the MCU – with the exception of Robert Downey Jr. who was already enjoying some popularity with Iron Man. At the time, the real stars of the project were above all the characters and not yet the actors who embodied them. Thus, some were paid only 200,000 dollars for their role in Avengers (2012) while Robert Downey Jr. had earned 250 times more, namely 50 million dollars for the same project, according to a source of Deadline.
A similar situation had also taken place two years earlier during negotiations for Iron Man 2: Terrence Howard had to give up his role as War Machine to Don Cheadle after asking too much money for the sequel. Subsequently, the actor even complained explicitly about Robert Downey Jr., because, according to him, his fees had been reduced to pay the exorbitant salary of the star.
IRON MAN TO THE RESCUE
If Robert Downey Jr. didn’t side with his co-worker at the time, it’s a whole different story when Chris Hemsworth and Scarlett Johansson found themselves in conflict with Marvel, refusing to sign a new contract if their salary was not increased. On the one hand, Chris Hemsworth’s team argued that the actor had already been paid $5 million for Snow White and the Huntsman (2012) and had no problem continuing to work with it. Universal if Marvel refused to change its mind. On the other, Scarlett Johansson clarified that she would not return to the MCU for so little.
Finally, a better deal for the actors was made… thanks to Robert Downey Jr. please! The actor has indeed persuaded the studio to review its offers, thus taking on a role of leader and big brother for his co-stars in the hot seat. In this regard, an insider source had commented the following to Deadline in 2013:
He is the only one with real power in this situation. And he also has steel c…. He’s already texted that he’s not going to work for a company that treats co-workers like crap.
All’s well that ends well and Scarlett Johansson and Chris Hemsworth have both returned to the project and have largely proven themselves to be essential to the franchise ever since. Scarlett Johansson did not hesitate to assert her rights later by suing the studio for breach of contract during the launch of Black Widow (2021). The bitter confrontation was resolved by an out-of-court settlement but the actress said shortly after that it was important that someone like her lead the way to prevent this kind of abuse. Just like Robert Downey Jr. did before her.
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