Ross Beadman, who played youngling Sors Bandeam in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith, recently shared how little he was paid for his small but memorable role in the capper to George Lucas' prequel trilogy.
In an interview with the Geeknd, Beadman confirmed that he was paid only £90 (a little more than $100) for his part in Revenge of the Sith. Beadman is the only actor to speak in the scene where Anakin kills a group of younglings, saying the now-iconic line, "Master Skywalker, there are too many of them! What are we going to do?" According to Beadman, the scene took four takes and approximately 10-15 minutes to shoot.
Beadman portrayed Sors Bandeam (whose name is an anagram for Beadman's real name) in Revenge of the Sith. The former actor was hired as a background extra but earned a speaking role when he volunteered to say the scene's only line. Beadman, who was just 6 years old at the time, would likely have made less money if he had stayed silent.
The rates of pay for extras vary dramatically depending on whether the actor is a member of the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), the American union representing principal and background performers for film and television. Non-unionized actors are usually paid minimum wage, whereas unionized performers can earn as much as $50/hour. Compensation also depends on what the performer is required to do. Actors with speaking parts, like Beadman, are typically paid more as they are considered co-stars rather than extras.
Hayden Christensen Really Scared the Youngling
Beadman also improvised the moment where Sors Bandeam shuffles backward in fear when Anakin Skywalker (Hayden Christensen) fires up his lightsaber. The actor credits the onscreen Sith for triggering his reaction, saying Christensen startled him by shouting "Boo" behind the camera. Beadman said his "6-year-old brain" couldn't comprehend that this moment meant his character was going to die. As a child, he believed Bandeam, whose death occurs offscreen, got away. "It took me a little bit of a while to accept that [I died] and go through the grieving process for myself," Beadman said with a laugh.
If Bandeam had escaped, Beadman says he "could've been a member of the Sith. The hatred could've consumed me to the point where I wanted to get revenge on the person who killed all my schoolmates." Bandeam wouldn't be the first youngling to escape Anakin's wrath. Such was the fate of Reva in Obi-Wan Kenobi, who also sought revenge for her fallen childhood friends.
Regarding his minimal compensation, Beadman's mind is far from revenge. The actor has no hard feelings over the amount he was paid, saying the sum felt like a lot to him as a child and calling the experience of being immortalized on film "priceless." Asked if he was displeased with his earnings when looking back on it as an adult, Beadman jokingly said, "Yeah, I'm gonna write a letter."
Source: YouTube