"Is That Even Legal?!" An Extra On Harry Potter Has Revealed What She Was Paid Per Day
Of course, we’re all well aware of the stars of Harry Potter by now. The film series kicked off the careers of the main child stars including Daniel Radcliffe, but there was so much more to the films than the three protagonists.
The films primarily took place in the enormous wizarding school of Hogwarts which was filled with students. With this in mind, hordes of kids were hired to perform alongside the main three,
One of these child stars was Samantha Clinch. Samantha originally performed as an extra but went on to play the uncredited role of Eloise Midgen in both Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban.
These days, Samantha is a presenter and on her TikTok channel, she shares the secrets of her time on the Harry Potter set.
@samanthaclinch Replying to @Bear The money video ???? How much I earnt as an extra, how much I earned as #eloisemidgen how much #danielradcliffe was paid, how we got the most for our money ???? AND what I spent it on ???? #nostalgia#harrypotterbts#harrypotterextra#harrynpotter#harrypottertok#harrypotterandthegobletofire#gof#harrypottertok#childstar#fyp
♬ original sound - Samantha Clinch
What Harry Potter extras were paid
First, Samantha said that when she went from being just an extra to playing the small role of Eloise Midgen, there was “a big jump in cash.”
She explained: “For context, in The Goblet of Fire, Daniel Radcliffe got paid $11 million—that’s nine and a half million pounds.”
Samantha revealed that the cast would have long 12-hour filming days, starting at 5am and added: “We would be called for breakfast to be in the holding area outside the set for 5:00 am in the morning and then be leaving at rush hour, on the bus in heavy, heavy traffic.”
Then came the reveal: “Are you ready for how much we got paid? £35 a day, £35.
“That’s £2.91 an hour.”
Yikes.
This all changed when she got the role of Eloise Midgen, though. Samantha said: “When I became the part of Eloise Midgen, honestly, little did I know that day, when I was going to set, how the day would change for me and my bank account.
“Before, like my friends, humble extras, we got £35 a day, £2.91 an hour. When I got this part, I then got paid £70 a day. They doubled it, they just doubled it.”
She has no regrets about this time though and said that in the grand scheme of things, £2.91 isn’t that bad and the food allowance made the set feel like an “all-inclusive.”
Plus, all that food in the banquet hall? The kids actually ate that, according to Samantha who added that it was “genuinely the most incredible time of my life.”
Awww.