10 Actors Who Made Insane Sacrifices For Movies (And Why)

3. Tony Todd Got Stung By Bees 23 Times...And Charged $1,000 Per Sting - Candyman

The Sacrifice

Candyman is one of the most criminally underrated horror films of all time, a ludicrously atmospheric and socially conscious genre film topped by a sublimely creepy performance from Tony Todd as the titular antagonist.

Given that Candyman's face is frequently adorned with live bees throughout the film, you'd be forgiven for assuming that they were fiberglass creations, or that Todd was wearing some sort of invisible covering over his face.

But no, everything you see in the movie, including bees swarming out of his mouth, was done for real. The only filmmaking concession was Todd being given a dental dam to ensure that none of the bees disappeared down his throat.

Why They Did It

But Todd took an extremely shrewd approach to the physical demands of the role, and sure as hell wasn't going to risk being stung for a one-off acting fee.

He managed to negotiate a deal where he'd receive $1,000 for every bee sting he received, and this resulted in a ginormous $23,000 bonus payout as he was stung 23 times over the course of the production.

Honestly, that's not bad going given how often Candyman has bees stuck to his face in the movie, and we're honestly surprised Todd didn't try and get away with claiming a little higher than that.

There are some actors who will put themselves through agony because they're masochistic, and then there are those enterprising folk, like Todd, who will take their lumps for the sake of a padded payday.