James McAvoy says one film out of a career spanning decades keeps paying him regularly, and it is not an “X-Men” movie. Speaking on Josh Horowitz’s “Happy Sad Confused” podcast in an episode released October 15, the 47-year-old named M. Night Shyamalan’s “Split” as his only dependable source of residuals, the payments actors receive when films are reused on television, home video and streaming. “The only one that really consistently pays me is ‘Split,’” McAvoy said.
The rest of his catalogue delivers little. McAvoy described the occasional check for a couple of hundred pounds and others worth a few cents, joking that mailing one costs more than cashing it. He added that he very rarely sees back-end money from anything.
He credited the economics of “Split,” which he recalled costing roughly $6 million to make. The film opened to about $40 million in its first weekend, he said, which put it in profit before most marketing bills came due. His first residual check, he said, was “bonkers.” McAvoy played a man with dissociative identity disorder who shifts between eight personalities, and praised Shyamalan’s discipline on the sequel “Glass” and the original alike. The director, McAvoy said, worked on modest budgets and arrived thoroughly prepared, which helped him maximize each shooting day.
The performance drew strong notices, yet awards bodies largely ignored it. McAvoy said he felt no resentment. “I wasn’t bothered,” he said, noting the climate for horror performances is shifting.
He spoke while promoting his directorial debut, “California Schemin’.” McAvoy suggested he may direct more and act less in future, then conceded that acting pays better. Directing, he joked, does not earn “two bucks 50,” so he will probably need to keep acting. His account covers his own deals only. McAvoy did not disclose current payment figures or contract terms, and residual rates differ by agreement and by performer. Shyamalan has not commented publicly on the remarks.
