The Marvel Cinematic Universe is no stranger to making movies with massive budgets. Especially when it comes to paying the major stars attached. It seems not everyone gets a big paycheck at the end of the day, however, and now one MCU star will not be returning for Avengers: Doomsday after a pay dispute.
This particular star made their MCU debut in Avengers: Infinity War. The role she played required her vocal talents, and for the follow-up film Avengers: Endgame, her character was left silent. It seems as though this might have something to do with the aforementioned pay dispute that will now keep her out of Avengers: Doomsday as well.
Here’s what was shared via Variety when the outlet spoke with the star:
“I think what it’s more about is what’s driving our industry,” begins Carrie Coon, who voiced Proxima Midnight in Avengers: Infinity War. Her husband, Tracy Letts, previously explained that Marvel chose not to give her a raise for future appearances because they simply believed she should be grateful to be part of the franchise at all.
“Like you should be lucky to be part of this engine that is making money in our industry,” she added.
“Here’s the metaphor: Let’s say you’re starting off in a business and get an entry-level position and are given an entry-level salary. You work in that business for 10 years, you’re no longer making an entry-level salary, and then an amazing company comes to you and says, ‘We think you’re great, and we would like to hire you.’ And you say, ‘Fantastic. This is an amazing company. I’d love to work for you.’ But they’re only going to pay you your entry-level salary. You decide it’s a great company, I’ll give it a shot. And then you work for them and they extend your contract. You say, ‘Wonderful. Can I expect to receive a salary commensurate with my experience?’ And the company says, ‘No, I’m sorry. We can only pay your entry-level salary.’“
Coon continues to explain that it’s simply business and nothing else:
“The lesson there is that my time is more valuable elsewhere. And so I part ways with this company, everybody amicably, because my time, especially as a person with a family, is more valuable than that. So it’s purely a business decision. I think that those comments are probably less sexist than they are just an indicator of where the movie industry was heading. IP was driving the industry at that time. Maybe we’re having a shift. Maybe we’re having a swing back. I think people, operate under a tremendous misunderstanding about what we’re paid in those circumstances. I think if people knew, I think they’d be surprised, and wouldn’t be surprised at the decision I made.“
Proxima Midnight certainly isn’t as big of a character as, say, Robert Downey Jr.’s Doctor Doom. He’s the big bad of the next Avengers movie and in order to get him to return to the MCU, he’s being paid as much as $100 million. As such, one can understand why Coon might not feel as though merely being part of the MCU is enough to accept a smaller wage. With her ongoing career, however, one can hope she really is making the best of her time with other projects whether they are paying more or simply feel more rewarding as an actor.
Stay tuned to ScreenGeek for any additional MCU news as we have it. While we’re still waiting to know who else will appear in Avengers: Doomsday, it looks like Carrie Coon won’t be one of the cast members.