According to Chinese media, the remuneration of A-list actors is currently commonly around 25 million CNY (nearly 97 billion VND) for a project. This figure is much lower than the 200 million CNY (about 775 billion VND) mentioned by the country's media during the hot entertainment market growth period.
However, 25 million CNY (nearly 97 billion VND) is not the ceiling issued by Chinese management agencies, but is only considered a popular cat-xe level when online platforms cut budgets, investors are more cautious and the market no longer competes with star names.
This change stems from the strong reform of China's film and television industry after a series of scandals of "yin-yang contracts", tax evasion and huge fees.
In the period 2016-2018, when capital continuously poured into the entertainment industry, many producers were willing to spend huge sums of money to invite attractive stars. Chinese media once reported that there was a television project with a total budget of about 300 million CNY (about 1,160 billion VND), but the money paid to actors alone amounted to 200 million CNY (about 775 billion VND). Some A-list stars are also said to receive remuneration from 100-200 million CNY (about 387-775 billion VND) for a work.
The fact that most of the budget is poured into fees has narrowed the budget for scripts, fine arts, costumes, special effects and post-production. Many films are criticized for being dependent on star names but the content is rudimentary, the quality is not commensurate with the investment cost.
Faced with that situation, in 2018, the China Radio and Television Administration requested that the total remuneration of all actors in a TV series or online movie not exceed 40% of the total production budget, in which the remuneration of the main actors must not exceed 70% of the total fund for actors.
Also in this year, three online platforms including iQiyi, Youku, Tencent Video and six major film production companies agreed on a self-management mechanism, stipulating that the cat-xe of an actor should not exceed 1 million CNY (about 3.9 billion VND) per episode and a maximum of 50 million CNY (about 194 billion VND) for the entire television series.
By 2019, Chinese media recorded that the highest cat-xe of many stars had decreased from about 150 million CNY (about 581 billion VND) to about 50 million CNY (about 194 billion VND) after a rectification process.
Recently, many industry sources said that a cat-xe of about 25 million CNY (nearly 97 billion VND) is becoming a popular level for some top actors. However, this is not an official regulation but reflects market trends in the context of online platforms cutting costs and manufacturers prioritizing budget control.
Observers assess that reducing cat-xe has helped many producers have more resources to invest in scripts, special effects, art and quality of works. However, income from acting is only a part of the total revenue of stars, because they still earn a significant amount of money from advertising, television programs, livestreams and brand representative contracts.
