Arnold Schwarzenegger is required to pay Warner Bros. $1 annually for an intriguing reason.
Viewers of this year’s Oscars may remember seeing Arnold on stage with Danny DeVito.
The duo, both having portrayed Batman villains, humorously teased former Batman actor Michael Keaton in the audience.
Schwarzenegger’s role as Mr. Freeze in the 1997 film Batman & Robin is connected to his annual payment to Warner Bros.
Actors often keep props from significant projects as souvenirs.
For instance, Ian McKellen told Time magazine that he has Gandalf’s sword Glamdring at home, positioned on his hatstand.
Schwarzenegger, like many other actors, possesses memorabilia from his films, including his Mr. Freeze costume.
What does this have to do with his $1 payment?
This payment is known as a ‘peppercorn’ – a small, symbolic payment used to validate a legal contract.
In this case, the payment allows Schwarzenegger to keep the costume from Batman & Robin on a long-term lease.
By paying Warner Bros. $1 each year, Schwarzenegger symbolically acknowledges the studio’s ownership while maintaining the costume long-term.
Upon Schwarzenegger’s passing, the costume is expected to return to Warner Bros. and not be part of his estate.
Film producer Peter Macgregor-Scott shared with The Hollywood Reporter that the decision to grant Schwarzenegger a long-term lease “went all the way to the top of the studio.”
He explained: “Storage after a movie like Batman Forever becomes a real element. A lot of the sets get folded and held so they are available for the next picture if need be. We didn’t keep the cave, because the cave is so unwieldy.
“You had to make the cave each time. All the unused bat costumes. All the wardrobe saved. The actors would like to walk off with pieces, and we have to be very careful that that happens to an absolute minimum.”
Macgregor-Scott continued: “Arnold Schwarzenegger wanted a costume of Mr. Freeze. It went all the way up to the top of the studio. He had to sign a contract, and I think he pays $1 per year to borrow the costume.
“The lights in those costumes last 9,000 hours. He doesn’t have them on all day long, but he does turn them on quite frequently.”
It’s important to note that Arnold Schwarzenegger doesn’t need the money.