How much do voice actors (or regualar actors make?)

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Kunmui

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I'm just really curious.I mean people like Jeff Bennet or Jim cummings you know.And People like Ron Perlman and Kevin Conroy (Who isn't really a voice actor but still).I mean is there any source on how much an actor of their status could make for a animated show or Movie?
 
I've always wondered this myself, I even asked a voice actor (who's name shall not be mentioned) out of curiosity awhile ago, and all they would tell me was it was enough to live comfortably, but thats if you have a recurring role.
 
But I'm pretty sure well-known VAs such as Jim Cummings, Tom Kenney, Tara Strong, and other well-knowns get paid pretty well. I'm sure even the VAs for Mickey Mouse and the gang get paid pretty well too. Not to mention the VAs for The Simpson's.
 
My guess is that if they are regulars at the studio, they get a regular salary. If they're new or just doing a one voice for one show as a freelancer, I'd imagine they get paid on comission. In other words, they do one show, they get one big check. Of course, I'm just basing this off how the animation the industry pays animators.
 
I don't know the numbers, but a lot of the voice actors I've read interviews with or talked to personally say that they make as much money doing voice-over work for commercials and other stuff as they do for animation. I don't think any of the major voice acting names that animation fans recognize make a living on voice-over work for animation alone. I remember reading someplace that the best-paid voice-actors in the business are the guys they get for all the movie trailers, like Don LaFontaine.

Despite the stories of the multi-million dollar salaries that some actors command, acting in general isn't the kind of job you take if you're in it for the money. It just isn't there for the vast majority of actors. This is even more true for voice-acting.

Also, I don't think any of the voice actors are under contract with any of the studios. Almost all of them are freelancers.

-- Ed
 
My best guess is that it would vary from studio to studio, actor to actor... stuff like that. I mean, I still wonder if people like Jim Cummings make more money than lesser known voice actors.

I also wonder... when a celebrity voice actor (not talking Simpsons, BTW... I think that's a special case) does a guest voice, do they pay them more, or the same as everyone else?
 
I think that may depend. I remember when Robin Williams was signed to do Aladdin, because he was with SAG he was payed *very* little for the Genie part because it was his first voice acting gig and the pay scale said they were only allowed to pay him so much.
 
And are movies a special case?

I refered of course to something Eric Idle appearing on a couple of Disney's shows (Buzz Lightyear for example), or some times on Animaniacs, or something like that.

And do the Simpsons people get paid more than regular voice actors, given the fact they're working for an animated sitcom?

And do voice actors get paid per session, hour, or character?

There's so much I'd love to know.
 
Yeah, I'd like to know as well. To take a stab at one, I would think Simpsons VA's would get paid more than usual since The Simpsons is the "Seinfeld" of animated sitcoms.
 
I am actually really curious about Hank Azaria,Kevin Conroy,Mark Hamill (even though he and Hank are big time celebrities) and Ron Perlman (Poor guy,I heard he didn't make a million For "Hellboy").I know its easier to act in animation than in live-action movies but I mean why would they bother working if they don't make much you know.
 
First of all, it's rude to ask anyone how much they make. But, the answer is, no where near as much as most people seem to think. Despite popular belief, very few people in Hollywood are actually rich.

As for why they would bother working if gigs don't pay much? Because when you are an actor, unless you're Jack Nicholson, you are in no position to just pick and choose your roles. You have to take what comes your way, because who knows when you're going to work again?
 
Hey both of you relax alright.I'm mainly asking for research reasons.Plus I'm interested in actually taking a few lessons regarding acting.I only ask about their salaries because you never know who in the entire network world wide has info leaking about.Look at IMDB, they have plenty of info on actors salaries,Gee I wonder how? Don't think of me as a rude guy or anything.
 
It can't be that poorly paid or people like Mark Hamill or David Warner wouldn't do it.

I'd also must it depends on the show and the actor. On B:TAS, I can't imagine Hamill, Warner, Adam West or Paul Williams took the same rates as Treat Williams or Jeffrey Combs. I may be wrong on that though.

I'd also imagine actors on Disney stuff generally get paid more than those who work for smaller companies, but again I could be wrong.
 
That's where the agents come into play. In order to get big names for any project, you have to call up their agent and they work out the payment from there. Obviously, the bigger names will have higher fees and accomidations.
 
It depends on the studio and the production.

The Simpsons cast has pushed for higher pay at least once. I've heard at least one of its dub casts has as well (Mexico?), but I'm not sure if they succeeded or just got fired.

An American-made show for SATAM or cable's probably going to pay less than a primetime one but better than an imported show. But the low end is dubbed shows from overseas. Part of their appeal is the low overhead- which is why dub-heavy producers like 4Kids have stayed with free tv as TiVo's made advertising harder among the regular consumers who can get it for under $20 a month now. The big money in dubs spent is on rights, not production or the more known/unionized VAs. Hence the Japanese dub of Animaniacs used Ikue Ootani for Dot but her original VA Tress isn't filling in for Chopper on One Piece. Dubbing companies go outside the US or built up an in-house stable of VAs, etc.
 
There is actually another reason why a lot of the dubbing companies keep using the same actors. Voice acting is harder than it looks, but a regular animated series is usually done by recording the actors first and animating to what they said later. Doing ADR does this in reverse, which makes the voice acting job even harder because your performance has to fit existing animation in another language. Not every actor can do this or be good at it. I'm working on transcribing an interview with Bob Bergen (the current voice of Porky Pig) where he said something to the effect that overdubbing anime is, in his opinion, the hardest voice acting job to do (that interview's coming Real Soon Now, hopefully before end of the year).

If you find an actor who's good at doing this, it only makes sense to keep using them. Otherwise, you waste money and time finding other competent voice actors who just can't produce the same quality stuff.

-- Ed
 
Lemme just add, if any VA's or anyone are reading this thread, I have more respct for Voice actors than major actors. I mean, I wouldn't pass up an Autograph of someone like Robin Willaims or Robert Deniro (by which I mean, hypothetically), but I'd rather have the autograph of someone like Rob Paulsen or Billy West than most of the big movie stars.
 
I once asked a voice actor who's done both anime and American-made cartoons, and he said the figures are so far over the map, there's no real average. He used to be a musician and said it took a long time for him to build up enough of a resume that he could voice-act full-time. How much an actor makes depends on where and how often they work. A general rule of thumb is that companies who produce cartoons for the American market have significantly higher pay scales than companies who dub anime, but they are also harder to break into and usually require having an agent with connections. A very small number, less than 1%, are enough in-demand that they make six-figure incomes just from voice acting (he stressed that this is for actors who do little or no on-camera or stage work, and includes neither the "stars" who do voice work in feature films, nor the all-around actors like Ron Perlman and Clancy Brown, who do every kind of acting, and whose voice work is only a percentage of their total income). He wouldn't name names, but I think we can assume these are actors like Billy West, Jim Cummings, Tara Strong, Tom Kenny, etc. There is another small percentage, probably 5-10% who make comfortable, if not extravagant livings from voice work, due largely to their reputations and the body of work they've already done. The rest, even some of the best-known names in the business, simply don't have the connections or the venues to make big bucks, and usually have to supplement their incomes with commercial voiceovers, audio books, radio spots, dinner theater, and non-acting jobs.
 
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