ROTTEN TOMATOES: Jet Li Sets New Salary Record with The Warlords

Jet Li Sets New Salary Record with The Warlords

Qing Dynasty saga reaching American theaters in '08.

by Jeff Giles | November 27, 2007

It may not seem like much when compared with the salaries of certain A-list American stars, but Jet Li's next paycheck will set a new record for an actor in a Chinese-language film.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Li will receive 100 million yuan -- or $13 million -- for his appearance in The Warlords. From the article:

Nearly half of the $40 million budget for "The Warlords" went to the cast, among whom were Hong Kong heartthrob Andy Lau, Takeshi Kaneshiro and Beijing-based actress and director Xu Jinglei, in addition to Li.

"Without Jet Li, we would not dare to invest $40 million in a Chinese-language film," Xinhua news agency quoted director Peter Chan as saying. Li was a "guarantee" for global sales, Chan said.

With his latest deal, Li breaks the previous salary record of 70 million yuan, which he set for his appearance in Hero. The Warlords, which The Hollywood Reporter describes as "a war epic based on a Qing Dynasty story," is scheduled to be released in Asia before the end of the year, and will reach American theaters next spring.

Source: The Hollywood Reporter

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(1-8 of 8 posts) | Reply

kungfu_sage writes:
on Nov 27 2007 09:49 AM

ok so he's not doing martial arts epics any more, but he's still doing matial arts movies and he's still doing epic movies in which he will probably do his fare share of martial arts. What ever, I still love his movies, except for War.

(Reply to this)

wtfcat writes:
on Nov 27 2007 10:40 AM

Me too. I'm glad he's making more movies like Warlords and Forbidden Kingdom. Both look like awesome epics. I think with his work with The One Foundation he's trying to promote peace instead of violence tho.

(Reply to this)

Holly Jolly writes:
on Nov 27 2007 10:42 AM

I think that caption for Fearless meant to say; "His last movie he will do the half hair pony tail made famous in Once Upon a Time in China".

(Reply to this)

A Lapse In Reason writes:
on Nov 27 2007 10:44 AM

When I read the title of the post I thought they were making a WAR part two or something. This should be kinda interesting I love all the epic Chinese films. Especially when i am in China cause they only cost a dollar, its great.

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rt_hire_me writes:
on Nov 27 2007 02:11 PM

I finally saw Hero to find out what all the fuss was about. I had already seen Crouching Tiger, so I should have known what I was getting into. If you don't like this kind of movie, you won't like it. Stunning? Sure. Novel? You bet. Entertaining? No. It's glorified Shonen Jump, without jokes.

(Reply to this)

GravitaZ writes:
on Nov 28 2007 04:26 AM

you aren't going to get rt to hire you with that attitude

(Reply to this)

rt_hire_me writes:
on Nov 28 2007 06:05 AM

Hey Gravy, are you breaking my calligraphy stick? Man, I will grab your arrow, break it in half, and keep on writing. I'm wearing my red kimono now sucka.

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kungfu_sage writes:
on Nov 28 2007 02:25 PM

I always cry at the part where the calligraphy master refuses to run and instead keeps practicing...

and laps-in-reason, I know what you mean, spent a year in chengdu

(Reply to this)