The Korean film industry has announced new measures, raising curiosity over whether the era of sky-high pay for celebrities is coming to an end. The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism held a signing ceremony this afternoon in Seoul for the 'Agreement to Foster a Symbiotic Film Industry Environment.' BH Entertainment, which manages Lee Byung-hun, Han Hyo-joo, and Kim Go-eun, as well as Management SOOP, which represents stars like Gong Yoo and Suzy, both signed the agreement.
With the rise of streaming platforms (OTT), a handful of top celebrities, because of their significant appeal, have been able to command 'sky-high fees.' For example, Lee Jung-jae earns up to NT$22 million (about RM2.777 million) per episode; Kim Soo-hyun receives NT$10.5 million (about RM1.33 million) per episode for 'Knock Off.' When actors' high fees take up a substantial percentage of a project's total budget, resources in the industry become imbalanced.
This 'Agreement to Foster a Symbiotic Film Industry Environment' is a joint initiative with the Korean Film Council (KOFIC) and several major talent agencies, pledging collective reforms in the film production environment—in simple terms, it's a kind of 'salary cap.' Going forward, for all mid-budget films that receive government subsidies, the total pay for all main and supporting actors, in principle, must not exceed 10% of net production costs. This is expected to improve budget imbalances and enhance the competitiveness of the film industry.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism pointed out that Korean film production costs have continued to rise in recent years. This year, in addition to increasing the subsidy budget for the film industry to 46 billion won (about RM126 million), it is also hoping that, through this agreement, the industry will establish a joint salary fee system.
News source: Liberty Times