5 Celebrities Who Worth a Million Dollars but Took Roles Without Getting Paid

Dec 11, 2018

It is only natural for the actors to get paid for their work.

However, there are a number of actors who took roles without financial rewards and set a great example for other celebrities.

Some say that they did it because of their connection with the production team, and other say that they wanted to help them create a better film under a tight budget by donating their talent.

To take a role without getting paid is not an easy decision to make; especially when one normally gets paid millions of dollars per film or drama.

Here are the list of celebrities who surprised the public with such a bold but impressive move.

1. Lee Jong Suk
Recently, actor Lee Jong Suk joined SBS' drama 'He Hymn of Death' as a male lead without getting paid.

It turns out that he had a connection with Park Soo-jin, the drama's director whom he first met in 2017 while filming SBS' beloved drama 'While You Were Sleeping'.
Lee Jong Suk said, "I decided to join 'He Hymn of Death' because I have always adored one-act play, and I wanted to be loyal to our director, Park Soo-jin."

2. Hyun Bin
Seven years ago, actor Hyun Bin played the male protagonist in 'Come Rain, Come Shine', a low-budget film that costed 1 billion won (approximately 890,131 dollars).

It is said that he not only did not receive any financial rewards, but also took care of the money that was spent to buy the snacks and the foods for the production team.
Lim Soo-jung, his co-star and the female protagonist of the film also surprised the public by joining the film without getting paid.

3. Lee Nayoung
Actress Lee Nayoung made her big screen comeback in six years with the film 'Beautiful Days' after giving birth to her beautiful baby boy.

According to the director of 'Beautiful Days', Lee Nayoung did not get paid at all and asked him to use the money on film.
Lee Nayoung turned down the money to enhance the quality of the movie, and the production team and the director were able to lessen the burden thanks to her thoughtful gesture.

4. Gang Dong Won
Back in 2010, actor Gang Dong Won garnered attention by making appearance at Korean singer Joo Hyung Jin's music video of 'Telling A Secret' without getting paid.

Gang Dong Won and Joo Hyung Jin went to high school together and they have maintained a good friendship ever since.
Whilst talking about his appearance in Joo Hyung Jin's music video, Gang Dong Won said, "I didn't do it just because I wanted to be loyal."

He added, "I liked his previous work which showed his belief, and his voice is just too good to be true."

5. So Jisub
In 2015, actor So Jisub took the role of 'Jeongjo' in the film 'The Throne' without any financial rewards.

Lee Jun-ik, the director of the movie stated, "He only appears in three scenes but his character implies a lot of meaning in the film. We had a hard time getting him on board, but he eventually turned around and took the role without getting paid."
So Jisub said, "Regardless of the number of the scenes I had, I thought my character mattered. I eventually decided to join the film, but I had a lot of concerns since I was not sure if I could pull this off."

(Kang Eunbee, Credit= Showbox, 51K, Warner Bros. Korea, 'SUPER SOUND Bugs!' YouTube, SBS funE, NEW, 'jongsuk0206' Instagram)

(SBS Star)