Liam Hemsworth and Josh Hutcherson are demanding more money to appear in the Hunger Games sequel, RadarOnline.com is exclusively reporting.
The pair are suffering with pay envy after learning that their blonde bombshell co-star Jennifer Lawrence, 21, is signed on to earn $10 million for the second movie in the series, Catching Fire – a significant pay hike from the $500k she received for the first film.
And the two male leads are even threatening to walk if the movie studio doesn’t give them what they want.
“When stars are negotiating their contracts, these things can happen and stars will try and bump up their salaries,” a source said.
“Liam and Josh got wind of Jennifer’s significant pay raise and they want more money to appear in the second movie of the tetralogy. They’re not demanding as much as Jennifer, they’re aware she plays a bigger role in the films, but they want a little more than the $2 million they were each offered.
“With the success of the first movie, they feel that $5 million is a more suitable fee and are haggling with the studio before dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s on their deals.
“And they have even said they may not return for the sequel, which they hope will be a bargaining chip for a bigger pay packet,” the source revealed.
As the Hollywood Reporter reported, Lawrence is currently negotiating her $10 million paycheck for the movies’ next installment. That figure will include salary, bonuses and escalators.
It’s a significant pay increase for the rising starlet who earned $500k for The Hunger Games, plus bonuses from the film’s box office earnings of $683.8 million.
Catching Fire is set to begin filming in Atlanta next month, then will move to Hawaii in early November. The sci-fi epic will debut in movie theaters on November 22, 2013.
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