James McAvoy has revealed that Split, the psychological thriller directed by M. Night Shyamalan, remains the film that consistently earns him residual payments. Despite starring in several successful Hollywood productions, the actor says meaningful payments from his other projects are far less common.
McAvoy discussed his earnings during an appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast, released on October 15, 2026. He explained that the financial success of Split, combined with its relatively modest production budget, helped make the film particularly rewarding for him.
Why Split Continues to Generate Earnings for James McAvoy
During the podcast conversation, McAvoy identified Split as the only movie in his career that consistently provides him with residual income.
The actor recalled that the film’s production budget was approximately $6 million, although Box Office Mojo lists the budget at $9 million. According to the same box-office database, the movie earned approximately $40 million during its opening weekend.
Those early results demonstrated the film’s strong commercial performance. Its worldwide box-office total eventually reached approximately $278.5 million.
McAvoy described the first residual payment he received from the movie as an extraordinary experience. However, he did not disclose the exact amount of the payment.
His comments highlight how a film’s financial performance and the terms of an actor’s contract can influence earnings long after its theatrical release.
What Are Residual Payments in Hollywood?
Residuals are payments that eligible performers and other creative professionals may receive when their work is reused or distributed beyond its original release or exhibition.
Depending on the applicable agreement, residuals can come from television broadcasts, streaming services, home entertainment releases, and other forms of distribution.
However, these payments vary significantly. An actor’s earnings depend on factors such as contractual terms, the production’s distribution arrangements, and the relevant industry agreements.
McAvoy explained that he rarely receives substantial residual payments from most of his other films. Sometimes, he receives only small amounts, including checks worth just a few cents.
His experience illustrates an important distinction: appearing in a commercially successful movie does not automatically guarantee substantial ongoing income for every cast member.
How Split Became a Box-Office Success
Released in 2017, Split was written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The psychological thriller follows Kevin Wendell Crumb, a man whose dissociative identity disorder is central to the story.
McAvoy plays Kevin and portrays multiple distinct identities throughout the film. His performance required him to create noticeable differences in the character’s mannerisms, behavior, and personality.
The movie also stars Anya Taylor-Joy, Betty Buckley, Haley Lu Richardson, and Jessica Sula.
According to Box Office Mojo, Split earned approximately $138.3 million in the United States and Canada and around $140.2 million internationally. Its worldwide total exceeded $278 million.
The film’s commercial success also helped establish its place in Shyamalan’s connected thriller universe. The story continued in Glass, released in 2019, which brought together characters from Split and Shyamalan’s earlier film Unbreakable.
Why McAvoy Was Not Surprised by the Awards Response
Although Split achieved considerable commercial success and attracted attention for McAvoy’s performance, the actor was not surprised that the film received limited recognition during major awards season.
He discussed the challenges that horror performances can face when competing for recognition alongside dramas and other genres.
McAvoy acknowledged that attitudes toward horror performances have begun to change. Nevertheless, he suggested that genre films have historically received less attention from major awards institutions.
The actor said he was not particularly troubled by the response to Split. For him, the film’s success and the opportunity to deliver a demanding performance mattered more than awards recognition.
His comments also reflect a wider discussion within the film industry about how performances in horror and psychological thrillers are evaluated.
What McAvoy’s Experience Says About Movie Earnings
McAvoy’s comments offer a useful reminder that box-office success and an actor’s personal earnings are two different things.
A film can generate hundreds of millions of dollars worldwide without every performer receiving ongoing payments of the same scale. Production costs, distribution expenses, contractual arrangements, and other financial considerations all affect how revenue is allocated.
Residuals are also different from an actor’s original salary. The amount a performer receives for making a film does not necessarily indicate how much they will earn from later releases or distribution deals.
In Split‘s case, McAvoy’s experience shows that one successful production can become an unusually consistent source of additional income within a much larger filmography.
For the actor, the psychological thriller stands out not simply because of its box-office performance, but because of the continuing financial returns he says he receives from it.