Vietnam’s booming film industry is transforming actors’ pay, with five of the country’s biggest movie stars now commanding around $76,500 per film.
Vietnam’s film industry has expanded at a remarkable pace in recent years. According to independent box-office tracker Box Office Vietnam, total box-office revenue in the country reached approximately $235 million in 2025. Nine Vietnamese films each surpassed $3.8 million in revenue, while Mua do (Red Rain) broke records with more than $26.8 million.
The film market’s rapid growth has also brought striking changes to actors’ fees.
$76,500 paychecks are no longer unheard of
Thai Hoa, one of Vietnam’s leading film actors. Photo: File.
Film actors’ fees can currently be divided into five tiers.
According to a VietNamNet source, the industry’s “S-list stars” comprise five actors whose fees have reached around $76,500 per film.
All five rank among the industry’s most sought-after performers. They have built portfolios of films earning millions of dollars, have been considered box-office draws for at least the past five years and have demonstrated their acting credentials.
Notably, a veteran actress with a background in theater recently joined the top five after receiving a fee of around $76,500 for a family-themed film scheduled for release later this year.
The other four comprise a veteran male actor, a male actor known for his strong acting credentials and two young stars currently making waves on the big screen.
A-list fees range from around $38,300 to under $76,500. Perhaps surprisingly, this tier includes a large number of artists, encompassing most actors who have regularly taken leading or major supporting roles in theatrical releases over the past five years, from young stars to industry veterans.
B-list actors command between approximately $19,100 and under $38,300.
C-list fees range from around $3,800 to under $19,100. Notably, this is where most theater artists who have crossed over into cinema currently fall.
D-list actors earn under $3,800, with the group consisting mainly of newcomers who have yet to establish their names or appear in notable productions, as well as performers who specialise in minor roles.
Behind the five-figure paychecks
Viet Huong, Hong Dao and Hong Anh are among the theater artists who have successfully crossed over into the film industry. Photo: Artists’ Facebook pages.
Four main factors determine how much an actor can command.
The first is acting ability backed by a film’s box-office performance.
In cinema, “good acting” can be subjective and depend on who is making the assessment. But when proven acting ability is demonstrated in a multimillion-dollar box-office hit, it provides producers with a solid and direct basis for determining an actor’s fee for their projects.
Prominent names meeting this criterion include Thai Hoa, Hong Dao, Quang Tuan, Kieu Minh Tuan, Phuong Anh Dao, Tuan Tran and Kaity Nguyen.
The second factor is personal brand, public recognition and fan base. Ultimately, a film is still a commercial product, and profitability remains a key consideration.
Actors with powerful personal brands, broad public recognition and large fan bases will therefore remain preferred choices. They include Hoai Linh, Viet Huong, Thanh Hang, Minh Hang, Ngoc Trinh, Anh Tu Atus, Dieu Nhi and Chi Pu.
The third factor involves the role itself, screen time and the genre of the production. Fees within each tier can be adjusted flexibly depending on the type and difficulty of the role, the amount of screen time and the film’s genre.
For example, an affectionate elderly southern Vietnamese character may not necessarily require Thanh Loc or Huu Chau, as Trung Dan or Viet Anh could also perform the role effectively. The fee can therefore be negotiated flexibly according to the circumstances. Conversely, some supporting roles require a distinctive identity, acting style or personality, or contribute a particularly important set of values to a film. If only one or two performers are suitable, their fees need to be adjusted accordingly.
For difficult or even dangerous roles requiring significant personal sacrifice, actors are entitled to request higher fees. Conversely, for a guest appearance involving just one or two scenes, even an A-list actor may receive only a nominal payment of around $1,900-$3,800.
The genre of a production can also affect actors’ fees. For certain types of projects, such as independent films, productions promoting historical or wartime themes, or films involving state elements, actors tend to accept lower fees.
The final factor is the outcome of negotiations and other considerations.
Among the five S-list actors, one actress reached the $76,500-per-film threshold as a result of negotiations conducted by her management company. Unlike freelance actors, she has to pay the company a percentage of the value of each contract. Her management therefore boldly proposed a fee of around $76,500 and secured an agreement, effectively elevating her into the top tier.
Conversely, many actors accept lower fees for unexpected reasons.
One producer revealed that actress T., who specialises in supporting roles and has appeared in numerous multimillion-dollar box-office hits, continues to charge only around $3,800-$5,700 because of her gentle nature. She firmly refuses to raise her fee, fearing that doing so might cost her the good fortune and affinity that have brought roles her way.
Others accept lower fees in exchange for fewer responsibilities in promoting a film through cinema tours, allowing them to devote their weekends entirely to theater performances. Some simply dislike making frequent public appearances, interacting with audiences or giving interviews, preferring instead to spend time with their families.
There are also cases in which actors agree to substantially reduce their fees in exchange for other benefits, such as the opportunity to invest capital in a project.
Quang Tuan (above) and Kieu Minh Tuan have built their careers on acting ability, backed by portfolios of films that have achieved both critical quality and strong box-office results. Photo: Artists’ Facebook pages.
The unspoken realities - and Tran Thanh’s contribution
Speaking to VietNamNet, P.H., CEO of a film communications and promotion company, said that while actors can be paid tens of thousands of dollars for a film, the sums are not actually excessive and remain disproportionate to the contribution they make to a production.
“In some films, the actor can determine whether the entire production succeeds or fails. What would Ba ke con nghe have been like if Kieu Minh Tuan had not played the male lead? Or without the pairing of Phuong Anh Dao and Tuan Tran, Bau vat troi cho certainly would not have been strong enough to compete in the 2026 Tet film race. Quite a few projects identify their lead actor while they are still just ideas on paper, with everything else then built around that performer,” she said.
For each film project, actors must use their fees to pay managers or give a percentage to their management companies, while also covering expenses for costumes, assistants, communications, photography and makeup.
“Lead actors are required to participate in film promotions and bear all the costs associated with their appearances. Paying an A-list or S-list actor $57,400-$76,500 to perform in the film, post promotional content and spend 10 days of the Tet holiday touring cinemas to meet audiences is very cheap,” P.H. said.
She added that most leading actors take on an average of only two films a year, as stars are generally selective about scripts and need time to cultivate their image and emotions to maintain the quality of their performances. As a result, their actual income is not particularly high if they rely solely on acting fees. Some performers do take three to five films a year, such as Quang Tuan, but such cases are rare.
In any field, fees are always a sensitive subject.
Contrary to what many people might assume, an actor’s fee can rise after a single multimillion-dollar box-office hit, but it is not easy for that fee to fall, even after a string of unsuccessful films.
For example, Thuy Ngan, Thao Tam and Tran Ngoc Vang have not been pressured to lower their fees despite appearing in a series of loss-making films. In fact, after just two films, Tu chien tren khong and Heo 5 mong, Tran Ngoc Vang saw his fee increase significantly.
Conversely, there have been many cases in which actors have been forced to lower their own fees after their teams misjudged the value of their personal brands and raised their asking prices to unreasonable levels.
In one case, after a film broke every box-office record, an actor followed his team’s advice and raised his fee to around $57,400 per film. Since then, however, he has had to cut his fee twice, and only after it fell back into the tens of thousands of dollars did he find a suitable project for his return.
P.H. also said director Tran Thanh deserves recognition for his contribution to accelerating the development of Vietnam’s film industry.
“Before 2021, there was not much to say about actors’ fees, and only a few names, such as Thai Hoa, had enough box-office appeal to be considered a guarantee of commercial success. Since director Tran Thanh entered the film industry, the market has received a major boost, segmentation has become much more pronounced, and a whole group of actors now regarded as box-office draws has emerged."
“With the number of films increasing two- to threefold in just five years, the pool of actors currently available in the market is not even sufficient to meet demand from directors and producers. I believe fees will not stop at $76,500, and new tiers will emerge,” she said.
Vietnamnet.vn
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