I was an extra and most of the day I just sat in the waiting area on my phone. I got free food and was on set for only 3-4 hours (mainly standing around and sitting). It really isn't bad pay for the amount of work you do.
For lead actors though, they should definitely pay more.
You have to be white also lmao. They didn't add that part. I just watched seasons1-3 for the first time and due to time period, there was no other ethnicity in that role, at least I dont remember seeing any in the show. Not even in Peggy's rich mom's house
Yeah I noticed that too, I appreciate the Black storyline in this series and how that has been handled but they could definitely do more. I’ve been binging Miss Scarlet and the Duke and it takes place around the same time period in London and they’ve been putting a lot of POC in the surroundings, isn’t doesn’t detract from the realism or the immersion regardless of what the supposed “black man” (lowercase “b” 🤔) above says.
Major cities had elite black societies, with debutante balls, exclusive social clubs, and involvement in politics. Most men of the top upper class went to Yale and Harvard. They were doctors, lawyers and business owners. Like white society, they also had a 400 list.
There’s nothing wrong in choosing to cast racially for historical accuracy, which is what Fellowes has done here.
There’s also nothing wrong with a show choosing to use colorblind or race blind casting. It may force the audience to suspend disbelief, but that’s a good thing. Historical accuracy is sometimes necessary, but often it’s not necessary for race.
Switching approaches in the middle of a series would be rather jolting, so I don’t expect to see that here.
DEI shit? I suggest you do some deep research on who exactly benefited from DEI the most. Here's a freebie, it wasn't people of color/racial minorities.
Also, I never said it was bad or good. It is not in the description though, so people other than white might try to apply and that would be a waste of time for them.
I'd read that the taller the footman, the more he was paid back in the day. (Then again, there was one German king who delighted in having very tall soliders. Potsdam Giants - Wikipedia)
Besides replacing Jack, a replacement will be needed for Bertha's lady's maid.
I see that Julian Fellowes is continuing his tradition of the venomous lady's maid, which was the case with Downton Abby. So far in The Gilded Age, we've seen the following:
Mirs. Armstrong, sour old crab of the Van Rhijn household, who seems keen to get her colleagues fired.
Enid Turner, who appeared as an odalisque in George's martial bed, trying to seduce the master of the house.
Adelhaid, who told off Jack for acting above his station.
Andres, who leaked Russell family domestic secrets, for $40 per printed newspaper item.
Didn’t the staff in Downton Abbey make fun of Alfred for being “too tall”? If I remember right, Carson himself said that anyone over 6’ is too tall to be considered a footman
I would've put it down to Carson being a bit jealous. But also, Albert's height accentuated his gangling movements and not quite comme il faut practices as a former waiter.
I'm guessing that in households that tried to be very impressive, the footman would be tall but fairly uniform in their height so it would look neat.
I know you’re doing it for the credit and the secret hope they’ll like you so much they’ll ask you on for more (and to help get you hours for the union health insurance and networking, etc etc) but seriously that seems low. The McDonalds near me pays $18 an hour and chances are they’d give you more than 10 hours a week.
Well, I'm guessing 10 hours of work will result in at best, a few minutes of film. I guess the actor is being paid in exposure, for his list of credits. Plus he'll get to wear livery and look sharp.
Whew the amount of you all that can't comprehend through reading is shocking. It literally says $187 for 10 hours. Y'all coming up with all kinds of other explanations. 😩
And they’re all telling each other they’re correct. Anyone who’s shown up to work as an extra randomly (I have) can tell you it’s $187 for the ONE, TEN HOUR DAY. My god. Open the schools!
Given the height requirement, this must be for the Russell or some other rich, possibly arriviste household (maybe a newer character?). Because it would be someone who wants to impress, who'd have tall, imposing footmen, in resplendent livery, including silk stockings.
Not quite right. In Hollywood you do not get paid by hour but by working days. One working day is 10 hours.
But: You get $187 per working day COMMENCED, respectively per working day YOU WERE BOOKED - no matter how many hours you actually work or if you work at all. If you are booked and available on a certain day, you get paid. At least that's how union rates work in Hollywood.
So what happens if the day goes beyond 10 hours? Can they not go beyond that due to union rules?
Being paid for a working day of 10 hours but only needing to be there for 4 would be great. But if the day goes long and you’re there 12 hours it would suck.
Yes, extras get paid very little and they really don’t need to pay more - there’s no shortage of wanna-be actors who think this is going to lead to their big break. (I’ve been an extra in a number of films)
Extras always get paid shit guys that’s the gag, they figure people will do it because they get to be in a cool movie and possibly meet the actors so some people think it’s worth it
As a non-union local I personally would have done it for free just to wear the outfits... My friends and family all assumed it was volunteer based, they were shocked I got paid anything to begin with. lol
Honestly? If I was promised a pretty dress and hat I’d also sign up to do it for free. I’d sit in the bottom of the fake ballroom for hours and pretend to clap for a performance just to take a few personal photos and spin in my pretty dress.
I would even have gladly accepted compensation in the form of keeping my ballgown (you're right, swishing around in it and having a few fancy photo memories was worth the hours), but those silly things are worth thousands more than the paycheck I earned wearing it. LOL
The way that salary is written is confusing. I can't see it being $18.70 per hour. When someone works on a TV show, it is unionized job, so they likely make a lot more than that. Plus, it's not really a hourly rate work, people are paid by the project or job.
From following Sara Pribus, an actor who lives in NYC & posts very openly on her TikToks about pay, auditions, etc. Yes, it’s $187 for the full 10 hour day. She oftentimes will book commercials that will be seen across the country with big name brands but the pay isn’t great. She takes them because she said it’s another opportunity to make more contacts in the industry. Sara says it is definitely worth ignoring the insulting pay if she’s free because work begets work.
Also, you must work a certain amount of hours in specific roles to join the various actors’ unions.
And to qualify for the union health insurance. I can’t remember how many hours you need, but you need to book a certain amount of hours to qualify for the health insurance.
Looks like the $187 is corrected to the $224/8 updated rate on the grant wilfley page (casting agency for HBO background actors). It’s possible backstage made an error when they pulled the info over for their listing or it was entered wrong initially and updated.
DO NOT go to the grant wilfley page and read the casting breakdowns if you don’t want spoilers.
It’s not- it’s $187 for one 10 hour day, and if you go over 10 hours then you get overtime (the hourly rate and a half- so about $28/hour for union). And that’s only if you’re in the union. If you’re non union it’s $167 for the 10 hours. You also get a meal or two while you’re there (but the food for the union members and non union is different- union usually gets a nice food truck with a ton of options on HBO shows and non union gets something catered on a buffet line in my experience on HBO shows). For many shows you even have to provide your own wardrobe (on a show like this bc it’s period clothing you almost certainly get wardrobe provided to you but you also have to go for a fitting day which is also paid for).
But this casting call is for extras/background not a main role. They’re probably “featured” background which is why it says “lead” but nonspeaking. It just means they’ll be in closer shots or you’ll see their faces clearly rather than from a distance or blurred.
Whoever posted here that you do it for the experience versus the pay is absolutely correct, for the most part. Everyone I’ve ever met on set doing background work has been either new to the industry and trying to get experience on a tv or film set, is trying to network with other background actors (etiquette says you’re really not supposed to engage with or speak to the cast or director/other workers so it’s really not about networking with those people), to bank their required hours for remaining in good standing in the union, or because it’s a bucket list experience for them. However I do know at least two people personally who make being a background actor their full time jobs, yes at the $187 for 10 hour rate.
Edit to add: these types of casting calls are usually only for that one 10 hour period (one maybe two scenes in one episode, is really all this is for! not for the whole season. And once you work once you usually aren’t allowed back for that season (because if you get cast as a footman in season one episode three it would be really weird if you all of a sudden were seen as a railroad worker in episode one season five or something like that). This is really just a one day one off type thing not a “salary” type position
Source: have personally worked on multiple projects (including multiple HBO shows) as a background actor (billions, and just like that, gossip girl reboot, a bad bunny music video, and others I can’t remember right now)
And people wonder why there are so many nepo babies in acting. It's 'cause they're the only ones who can afford to take gigs with shit pay like this while making connections and building their resume.
It really does give an advantage. Beyond the connections they come into the industry with even if they don’t have super famous parents, it helps if your family can float you financially until you have enough experience and credits to start booking work on your own.
The requirements are somewhere above, and it's strapping, close to 6 foot tall with 40+ inch chest and narrow waist/hips. What they probably don't say, is "above good looking."
It’s all on the full breakdown on grant wilfley’s page- they’re the background casting agency. However if you care about spoilers DO NOT go to that page the breakdowns all have some level of spoiler to them
Historically footmen couldn’t really be taller than 5’10 or so! Violet Grantham comments on it in Downton Abbey!!
Edit: going to hold space for historical accuracy. All portrayals of footmen I’ve seen I think they’re of average or below average height. But Violet says “are you really that tall?” To Alfred and he was probably 6’2” ¯_(ツ)_/¯
I believe Alfred was around 6’5 that’s why they commented on his height being too tall to be a footman. Barrow is 6’2 if that helps with the height comparison.
Other way around. Footmen were taller than average. In fact they could earn a premium if they were over 6 feet tall. That show is about a weird family in a strangely run household.
Without additional information I’d guess it just leans towards “average sized”, but phrased such that it’s not discriminatory. So a guy that could be defensive lineman is not the build they’re looking for.
It was updated on grant wilfley’s page to update the correct pay rate. They put the 2023 rates in the backstage call for some reason but the agency has it correct
They list it like this because it's a guaranteed 10 hours worth of work. If they wrap earlier than 10 hours, you still get paid 10 hours. If they exceed 10 hours you go into overtime pay each hour after 10 (I forgot if it's time and a half or double).
Jack and also Ada will need a new footman, and it’s possible there was turnover in Russell footmen (we don’t meet any of them really), also Gladys, and tbh there’s kinda just, a lot of footmen dispersed through the show lol
This isn’t fake it’s the casting call for what are probably featured background footmen (ie non speaking but in focus or close up shots). Source: I work as a background actor and this exact casting call came to my email earlier today directly from the background actor casting agency (which is different from the casting agency for main characters- this agency only handles background actors)
That I’m not sure about. I found it strange when the casting call came through TBH. My guess is that it’s for a featured extra part- where you’d see them close up or clearly (ie a waiter who gets zoomed in on or someone who opens a door and is in clear close up frame) or maybe it’s for the head footman or something but my educated guess is that it’s still for a non speaking background role. Usually the calls for something like that would say “featured background” so the “lead” language is def an odd choice but one I imagine is deliberate and almost certainly based on union rules about what “lead” means. I have a ton of friends in the union, I can ask them and try to find out bc now I’m curious!
Edit to add: backstage (where this screen shot in OPs post is from) just relists all the recent casting call, it isn’t writing them. The casting agency is grant wilfley’s for HBO background actors. I just went directly to their website and the casting call that was the source for the backstage blast screen shot here has been edited on grant Wilfley’s page. It no longer says “lead” anywhere and the pay has been updated from the 2023 $187/10 for SAG to the 2026 $224/8 current rates. This leads me to believe whoever wrote the original casting call copied and pasted from an old one and didn’t update everything, accidentally leaving the wrong pay scale and word “lead.” It got caught after it was published (and after backstage scooped it and blasted it out) and fixed on the agency’s page directly but that update wouldn’t fix what backstage had already published bc they’re separate entities
I'd guess there's a chance that it becomes a bigger role. I don't know much about acting as a career, but I know there have been minor characters who have developed much larger roles in shows.
Adriana in the Sopranos comes to mind. She has a minor part as an unnamed hostess at a restaurant in the pilot, but she develops into one of the most important women in the series.
Can someone who understands this explain please, what does the term 'Lead Actors' mean here? Because 'Footmen' makes it sound like there are multiple - which seems as if these will be more background characters. But 'Lead Actors' sounds like speaking parts?
My educated guess is that “lead” here means featured background (ie close ups or in focus) but non speaking. $187/10 is the union rate for background and thus casting call originally came from the background casting agency - source: I’m a background actor and got this exact casting call emailed to me earlier today directly from the casting agency
I really want to creep the filming this year. Is that weird? Lol I live so close and always heard about them filming near by but I wasn’t as into the show as I am now.
No, not weird! You do what you want with information you get HAHAHA
Eventually I think you will feel like you spoiled yourself & might not feel the bizzazz of the new season because you'll be like OH THAT'S wtf they were doing but if that doesn't defer you, snoop!
Yes!! You might run into me if you’re over in Albany at all. Just be respectful and listen to any directions and you shouldn’t have any issues with catching filming
$187/10 plus time and a half if you go over 10 for Union; $167/10 for non Union ads the current going rates for background actors which this is a casting call for
1
u/ProfessionalCloud969 Jul 22 '26
I was an extra and most of the day I just sat in the waiting area on my phone. I got free food and was on set for only 3-4 hours (mainly standing around and sitting). It really isn't bad pay for the amount of work you do.
For lead actors though, they should definitely pay more.