That’s how much the little boy from Titanic earns every year… for one sentence he says in the movie!

Those who appear in the film will receive money over the years thanks to the so-called “residual income”, the royalties generated from TV broadcasts or new theatrical or DVD releases of the project. And if it’s Titanic, you can expect gifts every year, even if you only utter one line of dialogue during the movie’s three-plus hours!

before Titanic Not only did it become one of the most famous films in history and became a part of global pop culture, there were doubts about James Cameron’s ambitious – and very expensive – project. Although the director had already found success with Aliens Returns and the first two Terminators, the budget, which then reached $200 million, some were convinced that Titanic It would be a mega-flop.

Obviously, you know the fate of the film: Far from being a failure, the feature film overcame it all to become one of the most important and profitable films of all time, which continues to benefit actor Rhys Thompson today. Although he only played a very small role – but a very poignant one – in the film when he was only 5 years old, he continues to earn money today thanks to his one spoken line of dialogue!

“What shall we do, mother?” her character asks when her mother tells her and her sister a story about when the liner is sinking. Third class passengers, all three would eventually perish in the icy waters.

Paid for life

time Titanic, Rhys ThompsonNow 20 years old, he could have made a lot more money with less commercial work that he was offered, but he and his mother chose this small role in this big movie. A decision that was incredibly profitable, because even after 27 years, the young man receives money every year.

“It turned out to be one of the highest-grossing films in history“, he said Rhys Thompson In an interview with Business Insider in 2018.So, in retrospect, it’s pretty weird. My mom was like, “Let’s do it.” It will be cool. Even if the movie is embarrassing, we will go see it. Obviously, the explosion ended up happening, so it wasn’t a bad decision on her part, that’s for sure!“

After getting paid for the hours he worked on the set, the young actor also received an additional payment of around $30,000 due to the huge success of the film. A large amount of money, which his family mainly invested in his education.

Over the next few years, he thus received his annual residual payments, each worth several thousand dollars, peaking during years when there was a new development in the home theater market, such as the first DVD or Blu-ray release. The film’s 20th anniversary events brought him a nice small amount of money as well.

However, the checks have gotten smaller over the years and, except for these recent developments, annual amounts now range from $100 to $250, an amount that Rhys Thompson He’s not looking forward to it, but it’s still good news for him when he gets the check.

“It’s weird because it’s not on my mind anymore. It’s not like I’m like, “Oh, when am I going to get another Titanic check?” When that happens, it’s more like, “Oh, cool, $100 more.”“

He also admitted that he did not reproduce the Irish accent very well:If you listen, it doesn’t sound very Irish. It just looks sweet. I remember trying to imitate what the vocal coach was trying to do. This is as close as it gets.“

“Talk to your mother!”

In 2022, actress Janet Goldstein, who played his (Irish) on-screen mother, spoke to Cosmopolitan magazine about filming their heartbreaking scene.

“I’ll tell you one thing about the little guy, Rhys Thompson: After we did the scene, he said, “So, when are we going to do the next scene?” And I said, “Which one?” And he said, “The one where we get on the boats and run away.” Oh my god. I just said, “Ah, talk to your mom!”“

His role in the 1997 hit film earned him his own IMDB page, where his role is described as “a little Irish boy”. today, Rhys Thompson Based in Utah, USA, it operates a ski and snowboard resort.

Titanic from James Cameron – starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet as star-crossed lovers – grossed $2.187 billion at the box office.

The movie is available to stream on Disney+.