Bruce Willis: $100 Million Man

The Sixth Sense bonuses to boost actor's bank account

By Emily Farache Nov 18, 1999 9:15 PMTags
It's been a very good year for Bruce Willis.

Or, more precisely, Bruce's bank account.

By year's end, Willis could be a $100 million man, according to gossip maven Liz Smith.

In her column today, Smith points out that Willis pocketed his usual $20 million-per-film salary for the three films he made this year, The Sixth Sense plus The Story of Us plus Breakfast of Champions, for a total of $60 million.

But wait, there's more. Willis' contract calls for 10 percent of the gross of Sense. It was his only hit of the trio, but it's expected to take $500 million all told. That means the former bartender's gratuity will be upwards of $50 million for the supernatural smash. (Coincidentally, ex-wife Demi Moore's biggest career hit was also spirit-based, 1990's Ghost.)

What this calculation means is that 1999 is to Willis what 1994 was to Tom Hanks, who earned a comparatively paltry $70 million that year for Forrest Gump.

Of course, Willis will be counting his Sixth cash well into Y2K. He also gets a portion of the proceeds from the future video sales of Sense, which Smith estimates could scare up another $10 million for Willis next year.

Ka-ching!