Meg Ryan Has An Insane Net Worth But She May Not Have Been Paid Fairly For Her Best Film, When Harry
There are some movies that will forever be an important part of pop culture and When Harry Met Sally is absolutely one of them. With a script by the brilliant Nora Ephron and directed by Rob Reiner, the 1989 film asks the ultimate question of whether a man and woman can actually be just pals. While there are many good recent romantic comedies, it's fair to say that many of the best ones were released in the 1980s and 1990s. And many of the most memorable releases starred Meg Ryan.
Although Meg Ryan stopped acting, her performance in When Harry Met Sally will never be forgotten. Whether talking about the challenges of dating or ordering food in a very specific way, her character is iconic. Did Meg Ryan receive a huge salary for When Harry Met Sally?
What Was Meg Ryan Paid For When Harry Met Sally?
Meg Ryan played Sally Albright in When Harry Met Sally, a young woman who becomes friends with Billy Crystal's character Harry Burns. The actress played a relatable and smart character who knows her own mind and doesn't want to do what other people tell her to do. It's no wonder that Harry falls in love with her as he can't get her out of his head and is drawn to her, despite their initial decision to stay platonic.
While Meg Ryan said no to Silence of the Lambs, which could have earned her a lot of money, she has a high net worth. According to Celebrity Net Worth, she has a net worth of $85 million. And she made much of her money starring in several romantic comedies that were released in the 1990s.
While Meg Ryan's When Harry Met Sally salary isn't known, she made an incredible amount of money during her early career. Celebrity Net Worth reported that when Ryan played Kathleen Kenny in You've Got Mail, she made $10.5 million. And when she appeared in City of Angels, she was paid $8.5 million.
Since the information isn't available, there's no way of knowing if Ryan was underpaid for When Harry Met Sally. But since the movie was released in 1989 and she began making high salaries in the mid to late 1990s, it's possible that she wasn't being paid a lot just yet. She might not have been paid as much as she was for You've Got Mail.
It seems that several actors were paid incredible salaries in the 1990s. Celebrity Net Worth reported that Leonardo DiCaprio was paid $40 million when he played the romantic lead in Titanic in 1997. Paychecks seem to have increased for the most famous actors after Bruce Willis made $5 million for Die Hard.
Sometimes, an actor will be paid less money but be given a back-end deal, which allows them to have some of the film's profits at a later point in time. According to Hollywood.com, Tom Hanks made $40 million from Saving Private Ryan because he didn't get a salary at all but made 20% on the back end.
It's definitely possible that Meg Ryan wasn't paid a ton for When Harry Met Sally but got a back-end deal and still did pretty well. Of course, there is no way of knowing for sure.
Even if she wasn't paid as much for When Harry Met Sally as her other movies, having $85 million is nothing to sneeze at. And since Ryan's resume only has a handful of movie roles between the early 2000s and today, she made the bulk of her money in a fairly short period of time.
How Did When Harry Met Sally Change Meg Ryan's Career?
While Meg Ryan starred in the original Top Gun which was released in 1986, there's no doubt that starring in When Harry Met Sally put her on the map. And it solidified her as a romantic comedy staple who could play relatable and lovable characters no matter what movie she was cast in.
According to E! News, Meg Ryan was attached to Steel Magnolias at the time, but she decided to go with When Harry Met Sally instead. No matter what she was paid for the movie, this seems like it was a great decision.
After When Harry Met Sally, Ryan starred in many Nora Ephron movies including Sleepless In Seattle in 1992 and You've Got Mail and Hanging Up in 1998. Still, it was When Harry Met Sally that she is most remembered for. And that is partly because of the famous scene in Katz's.
In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter in 2019, Billy Crystal shared that this moment was actually Meg Ryan's concept. He said that Nora Ephron felt that the scene could be more interesting and Ryan knew just what to do.
Crystal told The Hollywood Reporter, "And I went, 'In a public place like a restaurant.' Nora goes wild. And then we’re all laughing. Then I said, 'And then we’ll cut to an older woman who will say, ‘I’ll have what she’s having.’ And that’s how it happened. That’s how the movie got real, because of Meg and I and Nora and Rob sitting around, talking about, "How can we make it better?'"
The actress hasn't given many interviews in recent years, although she did share some insight into her career back in 2016. Meg Ryan talked about her past movie roles with The New York Times and said that she had better parts when she was younger.
Ryan said, "I’m sure the same opportunities did not present themselves in my 40s that did in my 30s and 20s. I think the last movie I starred in was 10, 12 years ago. It might have been The Women. I get offers to do things now, but they’re not things I want to do. I have so much admiration for actors who have incredible imagination for life or have life experience that they can then bring to the audience. I don’t think I was one of those people. I felt like an unformed person."
Ryan may have felt that she wasn't given the chance to star in interesting movies as she got older. But she did make a huge impression on movie fans with When Harry Met Sally and should definitely be very proud of her romantic comedy legacy.
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