Mark Rylance Took “Significant” Pay Cut On ‘Wolf Hall’ After Streamers Rejected Series, Says Director

deadline.com:

Wolf Hall director Peter Kosminsky has revealed that Mark Rylance took a “significant” pay cut on the Tudor drama after streamers declined to co-produce Season 2 with the BBC.

In written evidence to British lawmakers, Kosminsky said it was only possible to begin production on the Golden Globe-winning series after “the producer, the writer, the director and the leading actor all gave up a significant proportion of their fees.” Reflecting on the Playground drama, titled Wolf Hall: The Mirror and the Light, he added: “We had shepherded the series through a ten-year development process but, in the end, it was necessary for us to work for very little to get the show made.” PBS boarded the Hilary Mantel series in the U.S.

He said Wolf Hall was indicative of a wider reticence among U.S. streamers to invest in British storytelling. The BBC and others have said that the shrinking pool of co-production finance is contributing to a funding crisis in UK scripted content. “Though there are exceptions, it is not currently part of the streamers’ general financial model to co-produce with UK PSBs.

They prefer to wholly own a project,” Kosminsky explained in a submission to British Parliament’s Culture, Media and Sport Committee.