The 'Blair Witch Project' Cast Opens Up About Not Receiving a Paycheck For Years

Back in 1999, Heather Donahue, Michael C. Williams, and Joshua Leonard made their cinematic debut in a little film that would change the horror genre forever: 'The Blair Witch Project.' Premiering at Sundance, this indie horror flick quickly gained a reputation as one of the most influential and profitable films of its kind. Remarkably, it was made on a shoestring budget of just $35,000.

However, the overnight success of the film didn’t translate into financial stability for its actors. In an interview with Variety, Donahue recounted how her old Toyota Celica broke down right next to a billboard featuring her face. Williams, despite gracing the cover of Newsweek, continued to earn a living by moving furniture. Leonard, too, found himself working catering jobs to make ends meet.

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"We were all struggling to pay the rent," Leonard remarked. Williams added, "Your wife is in the grocery line, and she can’t pay because a cheque bounced. You’re in the most successful independent movie of all time, and you can’t take care of your loved ones."

Despite its massive success, the actors saw little of the financial rewards. Artisan Entertainment, which bought the film for $1.1 million, didn’t allow the actors to attend Cannes or discuss the film. When the movie grossed $100 million domestically, the company sent each actor a fruit basket instead of additional compensation. Globally, the film grossed $248 million, yet the cast's earnings remained minimal.

The artists felt sidelined by the industry. Donahue told Variety, "We were being cut out of something that we were intimately involved with creating." In 2024, the news of a reboot by Lionsgate came as another blow. The original cast learned about it through the media and responded with an open letter demanding fair compensation equivalent to what would have been negotiated with proper union representation.

They stated that they deserved what would have been allotted through SAG-AFTRA had they had proper legal support when the film was made. The settlement with Lionsgate now prevents the company from using their images for promotional purposes to profit from the reboot.

Williams voiced a broader concern: "Giant corporations don’t care that this happens to young artists. It’s rubbish. And that’s got to change somehow. Hopefully, we will help somebody to see: Don’t do what we did."

The struggles of these actors shed light on larger issues of profit-sharing and recognition in Hollywood, especially for newcomers. Although they reached an out-of-court settlement with Artisan in 2004 for $300,000 each, their journey highlights the ongoing challenges of achieving fair treatment in the industry. Their story is a stark reminder of the disparity between a film’s success and the recognition and compensation its creators receive.