Tim Miller reveals ‘not a ton of money’ he made directing ‘Deadpool’

Deadpool director Tim Miller opened up on the amount he made off Marvel’s 2016 hit, being the movie his feature film directorial debut.

The first-time director behind the blockbuster superhero film Deadpool, recently opened up about his earnings for the Marvel Comics-based movie, which grossed over $782 million at the global box office. 

Despite its phenomenal success, Miller shared in an interview with Collider that the financial rewards for directing the hit film were not as significant as one might expect.

“You guys might not know, but it’s not really a profitable thing to be a first-time director in Hollywood, and I’ll tell you exactly,” Miller explained. 

“I got $225,000 to direct *Deadpool*. I know it sounds like a lot of money, but for two years of work, that’s not a ton of money.”

Acknowledging his gratitude, Miller continued, “Not that I’m not grateful, I’m f-ing grateful, that’s the way it is because you’re supposed to when you’re a first-time director. My agent said, ‘Dude, you make more on an episode of The Walking Dead!’”

Miller expressed both appreciation and longing for the franchise's financial windfall.

“I feel uniquely fortunate to have been part of what became a huge franchise,” he said. “Then, my second thought is, I wish my director deals had a piece of the merchandising so that I could get some money from all of that.”

Following the success of the original Deadpool, a sequel was released in 2018 with David Leitch stepping in as director. 

After Disney’s acquisition of Fox in 2017, the Deadpool franchise was officially brought into Marvel Studios’ cinematic universe. 

The highly anticipated third installment, Deadpool & Wolverine, directed by Shawn Levy, debuted in 2024.