Alex Honnold, the daredevil climber who scaled a 1667ft skyscraper without ropes last month, has addressed speculation regarding how much he was paid by Netflix for the stunt.
Earlier this month, Honnold took on Taipei 101 — the 101-storey landmark in Taiwan’s capital, Taipei.
The 40-year-old completed the climb without ropes or safety equipment, reaching the top in one hour and 35 minutes.
Netflix streamed the attempt live, with a small built-in delay reportedly included in case the climb ended tragically.
After the climb, the American athlete appeared on Steven Bartlett’s The Diary Of A CEO podcast to talk through what happened and address some of the talk surrounding it.
At one point in the conversation, Bartlett asked him outright whether he had been paid half a million dollars for the skyscraper climb.
He replied: “Basically, I’ve done a ton of work for free over my life as all part of. It’s all part of the game, and I just love playing the game. And so you just let it play out. It’s funny because with this building, a lot of people thought that I was underpaid by it.
“But afterwards, some people have approached me about some bonuses and some other work stuff. Basically a lot has already happened, and it’s only been a couple of weeks since the building.
Honnold continued: “You don’t need to get paid for the thing itself because it always works. Don’t get hung up on how much you get paid. Just do the thing, make sure it’s freaking rad, and it all sorts itself out.
He also spoke to the New York Times recently, where he said the fee for the challenge was an ‘embarrassing amount’ in comparison to what athletes in major sports can earn.
“Actually, if you put it in the context of mainstream sports, it’s an embarrassingly small amount,” he stated.
On The Diary Of A CEO, Honnold explained that the New York Times had prompted the comment by asking him to compare his payout to something like a boxing purse.
Honnold continued: “If you compare it to Major League baseball contracts, then it’s an embarrassingly small amount. But I was never complaining. I thought it was great.”
He was also asked by The New York Times if the Netflix climb was the biggest payday of his career, and he again stressed that money wasn’t the main motivation, replying: “Maybe. It’s less than my agent aspired to. I mean, I would do it for free.”
While no official figure has been confirmed, some sources have claimed Honnold earned somewhere in the “mid-six figures” for the skyscraper ascent.