"Knives Out" two sequels: the director and the male lead each took $100 million in salary

In February 2020, Lionsgate announced that it would produce a sequel to Knives Out, but on March 31, Lionsgate announced that it would no longer produce a sequel, and instead Netflix would produce two sequels. Netflix signed an agreement with Knives Out director Johnson and Johnson's production partner Ram Bergman. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the budget for the two sequels of Knives Out exceeded $400 million, of which director Johnson, Bergman and male lead Daniel Craig each took $100 million in salary.

The contract gives director Johnson complete creative freedom, and he doesn't have to listen to Netflix's guidance. The only requirement is that the lead actor Daniel Craig must star in the sequel, and the budget of each sequel cannot be lower than the first film in 2019, which is 40 million US dollars.

Although the bid was high, Netflix thought it was worth it because Knives Out became a global hit as soon as it was released, and proved itself with a box office of $311 million, which is already a successful IP.