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Shailene Woodley began her career as a child artist in the 1999 TV filmReplacing Dad. She played a child actor for a long time on television before landing the lead role in five seasons of the teen drama,The Secret Life of the American Teenager. She starred as George Clooney’s daughter inThe Descendantsand did some indie films before landing her franchise role in theDivergenttrilogy.
Divergentwas a star-studded affair with many young stars and a few veteran stars in the mix. Lionsgate took up the project after their success with Jennifer Lawrence’sThe Hunger Games, another book-to-film adaptation. Interestingly, her big franchise film did not turn out to be the high-paying gig that Shailene Woodley expected.
How Much Did Shailene Woodley Make FromThe DivergentTrilogy?
Shailene Woodleywas the only choice of the makers to star as Beatrice “Tris” Prior in the 2014 filmDivergent. It was based on Veronica Roth’s 2011 novel which is set in a post-apocalyptic world where people are divided into factions based on their virtues. Tris is a Divergent, who doesn’t fit into any of the factions.
Woodley was confirmed as the female lead in 2012 andTheo James was confirmed in 2013 as the male lead, Tobias “Four” Eaton. The film made on a budget of $85 million was able to return $288.9 million at the box office (via Box Office Mojo). According toBusiness Insider, Woodley was paid somewhere between $250,000 and $500,000 for her role inDivergent.
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Woodley also returned to a sequel film, titledInsurgent, which was another commercial success. The film earned slightly more than the first film, earning $297.3 million at the box office (via Box Office Mojo). It was considered an improvement overDivergentand followed the storyline from Roth’s sequel novel. However, Neil Burger was still working on the first film and was replaced by Robert Schwentke as the director.
While Woodley’s salary forInsurgentremains unknown, reports from several outlets make a calculated guess based on Jennifer Lawrence’sThe Hunger Gamessalary (via THR). Lawrence and Woodley had similar career trajectories before becoming part of major book-based franchises by Lionsgate.
THR noted that Lawrence’s salary saw a jump from $500,000 to $10 million inCatching Fire, the second film. It was expected that Lionsgate would make a similar move and pay Woodley in millions forInsurgent. This salary trend would’ve also continued inAllegiant, earning her another few million. The third film was a colossal disappointment, especially with the studio’s decision to split it into two parts, with the fourth part being namedAscendant.
Ascendantnever happened since Woodley announced that she wouldn’t be a part of this film. She later explained toMTV,“I want to do justice to everybody who believes in the character of Tris as much as I believe in the character of Tris.”
TheDivergentseries didn’t catapult Woodley into mainstream star status as it was expected. It wasn’t even the highest-grossing film in her filmography. That credit goes toThe Fault in Our Stars, another book-based low-budget film that earned $307.2 million at the box office (via Box Office Mojo).
What Is Shailene Woodley’s Net Worth: How Much Did She Earn From Other Projects?
According toYahoo! Finance, Shailene Woodley has an estimated net worth of $12 million. Her breakout role inThe Secret Life of American Teenagerreportedly earned her $100,000 per season (via The Richest). It meant that her role as troubled teenager Amy Juergens would earn her a total of half a million from 2008 to 2013.
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Her salary from projects likeThe Fault in Our StarsandSnowdenis unknown. Owing to the fact that she mostly appears in indie projects, it can be guessed that she is not making as much as her role in theDivergentseries. However, the closest she came to a high-paying gig post-Divergentis the ensemble series,Big Little Lies.
Her salary for playing Jane Chapman in the first season was reported to be a total of $1.7 million or $242,000 per episode. It was astark difference from the paychecks of her co-starsin the series. Interestingly, Reese Witherspoon took home a million per episode and had a $758,000 difference in per episode salary with Woodley.
InSeason 2, it was reported that Woodley was given a pay rise. Reports put it between $300,000 and $500,000 per episode. However, it is still low when fans get to know that the second season’s new addition, Meryl Streep was paid $800,000 per episode.
Woodley runs a non-profit organization that she co-founded with her mother called All It Takes. Woodley’s money mostly goes into running this youth development project. She is also a climate change activist and is against the idea of having a home unless it is 100% solar built from reclaimed or recycled materials (via Architectural Digest).
Shailene Woodley’s Net Worth Compared ToDivergentCo-Stars
Kate Winsletwas one of the most popular names to join theDivergentcast alongside Shailene Woodley. Winslet played the antagonist Jeanine, the cruel leader of Erudite who hunts down Divergents. At the time, Winslet had already won her Oscar. She has an estimated net worth of $65 million.
Theo James did not have much bigger roles after theDivergentseries. He played the male protagonist and might’ve earned somewhere close to Woodley for the films. He only has an estimated net worth of $4 million.
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Naomi Watts plays Evelyn Johnson-Eaton, who is the mother of Theo James’ character and the leader of Factionless. After decades of industry experience, Watts was one of the senior actors on the set. While her salary in the films remains unknown, she has an estimated net worth of $35 million.
Miles Teller plays Peter Hayes in the films and it was his second time collaborating with Woodley afterTheSpectacular Now. The actor went on to gain major recognition with the filmWhiplashand starred alongside Tom Cruise inTop Gun: Maverick. Teller’s net worth is estimated to be $16 million.
Ansel Elgort plays Caleb Prior, the brother of Woodley’s Tris. After theDivergentseries, Elgort went on to gain greater recognition with his roles inThe Fault in Our Starsopposite Woodley and Edgar Wright’sBaby Driver. Elgort only has a net worth of $6 million.
Shailene Woodley made headlines during the pandemic when she was reportedlydating NFL quarterback Aaron Rodgers. In 2021, she confirmed onThe Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallonthat she was engaged to Rodgers. However, in 2022,Peoplereported that they had called off their engagement.
Hashim Asraff
Senior Writer
Articles Published :3017
Hashim Asraff is a Senior Entertainment Writer at FandomWire, with over 2,800 articles published on celebrity culture, comic book movies, and major TV franchises. With a background in Sociology and a keen interest in pop culture, Hashim brings a unique lens to breaking news stories, character deep-dives, film rankings, and fan-driven perspectives.His coverage often includes the MCU, DCU, hit network shows, and celebrity profiles, giving readers a rich blend of entertainment and analysis. A longtime fan of crime and investigative series, Hashim has watched thousands of episodes of NCIS, Criminal Minds, Law & Order: SVU, Bones, Blue Bloods, and The RookieA passionate storyteller and wordsmith, Hashim has also worked as a ghostwriter and managed multiple social media handles. He brought his writing expertise to FandomWire to also pursue his lifelong love for cinema and television.
