A lot of money for “nothing”

Mo, 09.07.2001, Marcel Lanthemann

Filming of «Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone» has just wrapped, with the second trailer amazing fans, while John Cleese’s salary for a small role in the movie is setting tongues wagging.

As «Nearly Headless Nick» Cleese haunts the halls of the magical castle Hogwarts and gets into many scrapes with Harry Potter and the other students of wizardry. Cleese revealed his own hard head during the poker game for his salary, demanding approx. 300,000 CHF for his part. Director Chris Columbus, who desperately wanted Cleese for the role, felt boxed into a corner and convinced the producers to raise their original offer. The end result: the actor received 900,000 CHF for three day’s work. Less pleased than Cleese were his co-stars when the wrap party was cancelled due to the unexpected expense. One member of the crew stated angrily: “The crew is shocked. That is much too much money for a ghost."