Jason Statham admits that money kept him from returning to the Transporter series

Over the last few years, Jason Statham has made it clear that there are very few things that will keep him away from starring in an action movie where he gets to drive cars, shoot guys, punch guys, wear suits, be bald, and talk in an accent. He’s like the Bruce Willis of being bald and willing to appear in any movie that will have him. However, when Luc Besson announced that he was planning to reboot the Transporter films (Statham’s most famous series, if you don’t count the one he just jumped on to), the man himself was nowhere in sight. Instead, Statham had been replaced by Game Of Thrones’ Ed Skrein.

It seemed like a grand mystery at the time (not really, but c’mon), and countless Statham fans found themselves wondering what had happened. Had some young woman been kidnapped and Statham was too busy rescuing her to make the movie? Had something nonsensical happened to Statham’s heart and he had to keep it charged with electricity or he’d die? Actually, no. The studio just wasn’t going to pay him enough money. Speaking with Vulture, Statham admitted the boring truth: “I would have loved to keep doing it. But they wanted me to sign on and do three more films without even seeing a script, and they offered me less money to do three than I’d get paid for one!” C’mon, people. Jason Statham is the star of Wild Card, The Mechanic, Safe, Killer Elite, and Homefront. He deserves financial respect. Luckily, the Redbox customers of the world will never get sick of seeing him drive cars and punch dudes, so he can afford to be a little picky these days.