Salary of a Child Actor

Highest Paid

In early 2011, Jaden Smith, 12, became the highest paid child actor in Hollywood when he inked a $3 million deal for the remake of “The Karate Kid,” according to the Daily Mail. Smith had only appeared in three other films before making the movie with action star Jackie Chan. The youngster though has an acting pedigree — his father actor Will Smith and mother Jada Pinkett Smith are A-list actors. Jaden Smith got his Hollywood start with a role in “The Pursuit of Happyness” alongside his father in 2006.

In 2010, the highest paid actor on television was Angus T. Jones, 16, of “Two and a Half Men.” Jones earned $250,000 per episode of the hit TV series, according to the New York Post. The second spot on the list goes to “iCarly's” Miranda Cosgrove, 16, at $180,000 per episode. Gomez, 18, of “Wizards of Waverly Place,” earned $25,000 per filming. Rounding out the top five highest paid television child stars of 2010 are Dylan and Cole Sprouse, 17, of “The Suite Life” at $20,000 each per episode and Keke Palmer, 16, of “True Jackson”,” who also earns $20,000 per episode. “Hannah Montana” star Cyrus, 18, got $15,000 per taping.

Child actors are paid on contract basis just like their older counterparts. Most contracts are written for the duration of a movie filming or a season of a television show. Agents and filming companies work together to negotiate this pay. In 2000, child actors in “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone” withdrew from the film because of a squabble over wages. The star of the movies, Daniel Radcliffe, 11 at the time of the deal, signed a contract for about $300,000 for the first two movies in the Harry Potter series, according to The Independent.

Actors make a living earning sometimes erratic salaries based on the work they are doing. Typically actors do not earn a standard paycheck and are hired for certain movies, shows or plays. This works the same way for child actors. The median hourly wage of an actor, of any age, was $16.59 in 2008, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The variation and per-job nature of work for actors made annual incomes unavailable. Many actors are represented by unions and collective bargaining agreements, which help determine and set base pay levels. The Screen Actors Guild and the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists have an agreement that pays a minimum of $782 per day for all union members who take speaking roles in television or movies, according to the BLS.