How Much Money Do Stars Make for a Golden Globe Win?

How much money do actors make for a Golden Globe? There’s no Golden Globe money purse for films or actors. That said, the award can be quite lucrative in terms of a movie’s earnings bump. That can translate to big bucks for an actor on back-end percentage deals. It can also mean a career-changing salary boost for newer actors, though old hands don’t see much of an earnings jump from a win. Think of a Golden Globe like a Super Bowl win for a player. The players themselves don’t get much cash for a win in the big game, but a rookie quarterback who takes his team to victory in the Super Bowl can see his salary go from a million or so to $20 million the next year.

Here’s How Much Money Actors Make for a Golden Globe Win

The table below shows the top line Golden Globe money facts, including how much actors make and how much films can make.

How Much Money Do Stars Make for a Golden Globe Win?
Money for a Golden Globe win$0
Average box office bump to film for a Golden Globe win$15,000,000
Star share of Golden Globe box office bump (at 1/2%)$75,000
Star future salary boost from Golden Globe win50%
Golden Globe salary boost in dollar terms$10 to $20 Million
How much can an actor sell a Golden Globe for?$5,000 to $100,000

The Golden Globes aren’t a cash award. As with the Academy Awards, Golden Globes can go to actors, directors, films, songs, screenwriters and other moviemaking pros. A Golden Globe win does give actors some money though, albeit indirectly. The stats show that a picture that wins one of these awards sees an average box office earnings bump of $15 million after the win. The idea is that the increased interest from fans generates more foot traffic into theaters.

The Golden Globe Money Bump for Actors

Most top-line actors get some kind of percentage deal when they act in a film. A headline actor might get anywhere from half a percent to five percent of a film’s cut after its production budget has been earned back. Even at that half percent figure, a $15 million Golden Globes earnings bump means $75,000 more in the star’s pocket.

That’s not the biggest payout from a Golden Globe to a motion picture professional though. An actor can see a career-changing income shift after a win, as the section below illustrates.

A Golden Globe Win Can Mean Millions

golden-globesFor a relatively new and untested actor or other movie pro, a Golden Globe win can mean a lot of money. The biggest earnings boost happens in the form of a vastly improved career. Though established actors like Harrison Ford or Leonardo DiCaprio rarely see any kind of income improvement after a win, other actors definitely notice it.

For example, Oscar Isaac won his first Golden Globe in 2014 for his performance in the Cohen Brothers picture Inside Llewyn Davis. He earned an estimated $80,000 for that role. Before that he had largely been an indie movie star with little recognition in the wider moviegoing public. After the Golden Globes win his earnings multiplied by a factor of 10 to 20. He made over $1 million for the sci fi thriller Ex Machina one year later and an estimated $2.1 million for his work in Star Wars: The Force Awakens. Would he have commanded that kind of payday if he hadn’t won the Golden Globe and hadn’t been in a Coen Brothers flick? Probably not right away. However, an argument can be made that the Coen appearance alone was enough to springboard him to stardom.

Established Actors Don’t Make Much Money for a Golden Globes Win

Actors like Harrison Ford, Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon aren’t as likely to see much of an earnings boost from a Golden Globes win. They won’t likely notice an extra $75,000 (or even $750,000) in back-end earnings from a win. They also already pull down big money for each film role. Since their names are already household words, it’s doubtful a Globes win will give much of a perk to their careers. It’s like a known star quarterback like Tom Brady getting named MVP in the Super Bowl. Tom’s salary is already high and it’s not going any higher because of yet another win.

Can Actors Sell Golden Globes?

Actors and other film industry pros can and do sell Golden Globes after a win. That’s different from Oscars, which are prohibited from resale by the Academy. While several actors have tried to sell Oscars for ready cash, they’ve all been shut down by lawsuits. Not so with Golden Globes, which are on sale now around the internet and at auction.

So how much money can a Golden Globe sell for? A fresh one with no name on the nameplate just sold for $5,100 at Julien’s Live Auctions. Unknown actors have sold Golden Globes for $5,000 to $10,000. Globes won by other actors like Marlon Brando and Al Pacino are currently up for auction, with starting bids around $25,000. Awards from big name actors could fetch anywhere from $100,000 to $120,000 and upward.