Brad Pitt and George Clooney cut pay for 'Wolfs' release

In "Wolfs," George Clooney and Brad Pitt play specialists in dirty work. They are hired to cover up a mistake made by a powerful New York politician, which triggers a series of bizarre events. Many were surprised that even though viewers can only watch the film's trailer in theaters, there is already information about when it will be available for streaming. The film will be released in American theaters on a very limited basis on September 20, and a week later, on September 27, it will be available on the Apple TV+ platform.

"Wolfs" is unlikely to become a box office hit. It only has a chance to shine in streaming. Therefore, many were even more surprised by reports that the stars were set to receive astronomical sums for their participation in the film.

In August of this year, "The New York Times" reported that Apple was to pay the actors $35 million each, while director Jon Watts was to receive $15 million. It is rare for stars to comment on such reports. Usually, these reports are true, and it probably doesn't surprise anyone that the biggest stars could earn that much in the entertainment industry. Especially in the golden age of streaming, where hundreds of millions are spent on new productions.

Meanwhile, Clooney reacted unexpectedly to reports about the payouts during the film's premiere at the Venice Film Festival. Clooney was annoyed when this topic was brought up at a press conference. "It was an interesting article, but regardless of where they got such information about our payouts, it was millions, millions, millions less than stated. And I say this only because it's bad for our industry if people think these are standard payouts," Clooney said.

"It's terrible, and it could make filmmaking soon impossible," the actor added.

Clooney admitted that he and Pitt returned some of the money when it turned out that "Wolfs" would have limited theatrical distribution. They wanted to support the production so that the film could still be shown in some American theaters. "We wanted the film to be seen in theaters, but there were various obstacles," Clooney said, noting that after the pandemic, not all productions can still enjoy good success.

It is worth noting that "Wolfs" is Pitt and Clooney's first collaboration since the 2008 film Burn After Reading.