Jonny Brugh starred as Rapu in Thor: Love and Thunder. Photo / Disney
Jonny Brugh starred as Rapu in Thor: Love and Thunder. Photo / Disney
Appearing in the Marvel Cinematic Universe usually comes with a hefty pay packet for most of the Hollywood stars who don the capes and spandex - but if you are in a supporting role, it turns out the pay isn’t as glamorous.
Jonny Brugh, best known for his role as Deacon in What We Do in the Shadows, appeared in the opening sequence of Taika Waititi’s Thor: Love and Thunder. His role as the god Rapu saw him appear opposite Oscar winner Christian Bale, and their interaction kickstarted the events of the movie.
However, despite the importance to the movie’s plot, Brugh revealed on the Billy T’ Billy podcast that his appearance fee was surprisingly low.
“An actor said to me recently, ‘what’d you get, $100,000?’ I wish. No, the fee that I got was not enough to cover the expenses of getting over there to do the work.
“A Marvel producer doesn’t get that job without having a killer instinct and without knowing how to pay very little money,” Brugh said.
Thor: Love and Thunder, which grossed over US$760 million at the box office last year, was filmed in Sydney, Australia.
Jonny Brugh (left) and Jack Ansett feature in Billy T' Billy. Photos / NZ International Comedy Festival
Brugh said that’s the reality of the situation though, because he was never going to say no to the offer of appearing in the global blockbuster.
“The only power that my agent has when negotiating fees like that is whether or not I’m prepared to walk away from the job. If I’m not prepared to, then my agent has no negotiating power.”
On the plus side, Brugh told Jack Ansett on the podcast that the role did mean getting to spend a lot of time with Bale, because they had to wait around a lot while the shots were being set up.
“I think in my wide shot I threw a piece of fruit across the set, and Taika went, ‘that’s great, you’re gonna throw that piece of fruit when he’s now on his knees in front of you’. So I spent a whole take throwing pieces of half-eaten rockmelon at Christian Bale. And he’s looking at me going, just hit me right here, mate, right in the chest.
“I think I hit him in the chest once. I hit him in the face, I hit him in the balls.”
“Not many people can say that,” Ansett pointed out.
“That’s right - Deacon the vampire throws half-eaten fruit at Batman,” Brugh agreed.
Listen to the full podcast for more from Jack and Jonny on comedy in New Zealand in the 90s, the rise of social media and its impacts on comedy, and their upcoming shows in the International Comedy Festival.
Billy T’ Billy is a NZ Herald podcast celebrating local comedy ahead of the New Zealand International Comedy Festival. Each episode has a different 2023 nominee talking with a former Billy T or Fred Award winner. New episodes are out every Tuesday.
This year’s Billy T nominees, include Howells, Gabby Anderson, Jack Ansett, Janaye Henry and Maria Williams. The New Zealand International Comedy Festival runs from May 6th to May 28th.
