How Donald Sutherland’s ‘Animal House’ Deal Cost Him Millions

Legendary actor Donald Sutherland died on Thursday at the age of 88 after a long illness The Hollywood Reporter. Sutherland leaves in his wake a string of classic films, including Animal house, The dirty dozen, M*A*S*H, Kelly’s heroes, Ordinary people And Invasion of the Body Snatchersto name a few.

Sutherland’s role in it Animal house– released in 1978 – is notable not only for its memorable turn as a college professor who smokes weed with his students, but also for the stash of green left behind by the actor after opting for an upfront payment for the film rather than a profit-sharing after-the-fact deal.

In a 1998 interview with Entertainment weeklysaid director John Landis that he contacted Sutherland to star in the film because the only big name featured at the time Saturday Night Live star John Belushi.

“We had Belushi, but Universal wanted another star. Now I was a flunky on set Kelly’s heroes in Yugoslavia. And Donald Sutherland and I had become very friendly. I always looked after Kiefer,” Landis said EW. “So I called Donald and he said, ‘I’ll do it, but I’m not going to do it because of the scale. They have to pay me in advance. I can’t remember the numbers involved, but if he had taken a profit position he would have made at least $20 million.

According to box office tracker The numbers, Animal house earned $141.6 million in its domestic theatrical run against a production budget of $3 million before prints and advertisements.

How much money did Sutherland make from ‘Animal House’?

In a 2014 interview with VarietyDonald Sutherland revealed what he received for his upfront payment instead of what he would have earned had he accepted the profit sharing agreement, which the trade publication said was for 2% of the back end.

“I told them, ‘No, you have to pay me my daily rate,’” Sutherland said Variety. “So I got $25,000 for the day, when I could have ended up with $14 million.”

While Sutherland’s estimate of $14 million is $6 million less than what John Landis guessed in the report EW interview, the actor still left a lot of money on the table.

In Sutherland’s 2014 interview profile with VarietyLandis reiterated how crucial Sutherland’s participation was Animal house, not just for the film, but for what the film did for others.

“I was actually told I had to deliver a movie star or we would close,” Landis said Variety. “The only movie star I knew was Donald. And because he said yes, that’s why we got the green light. All these actors who started that movie, from Kevin Bacon to Tom Hulce, owe him a huge debt.

In Animal houseSutherland plays Dave Jennings, a college professor who has an affair with one of his students, Katy (Karen Allen).

Animal houseof course tells the story of Delta House, a fraternity full of party animals who attend Faber College, led by John ‘Bluto’ Blutarsky.

ForbesDavid Hyde Pierce on Kelsey Grammer: He’s ‘one of the best actors I’ve ever worked with’By means of Tim Lammers