There is a massive difference in the salaries of Troy Baker and Pedro Pascal for playing the role of Joel in The Last of Us.

troy baker and pedro pascal, the last of us

Troy Baker and Pedro Pascal have both played the role of Joel in The Last of Us. However, both of them belong to vastly different sectors of the media and hence were paid different amounts for the same role.

Joel in The Last of Us
Troy Baker as Joel is a treat to watch. Image Credit: Naughty Dog

Troy Baker is the most popular and highest-paid voice actor in the gaming industry. He has worked on some of the most widely celebrated video game franchises, including The Last of Us, Death Stranding, and Uncharted. There is bound to be a difference between Baker’s and Pascal’s salaries.

Troy Baker Is The Most Valued Voice Actor In The Gaming industry

The Last of us Tv Series
Pedro Pascal played the role of Joel in the TV series, The Last of Us. Image Credit: HBO

Baker’s contribution to the world of gaming is immense. He has been a part of the industry for over 20 years, having played some of the most memorable characters in gaming. One of these most successful roles was Joel’s role in The Last of Us.

The game was released back in 2013 and became an immediate hit. It was lauded for its intimate and narrative-driven storytelling that shaped Joel as a cultural phenomenon and made Troy Baker more successful than ever. The game was later adapted for screen by HBO.

In the series titled The Last of Us, Joel was played by none other than Pedro Pascal. He embodied the role of Joel amazingly well. The series helped widen the audience of the game, the story of which resonated with millions.

Pedro Pascal was allegedly paid a sum of $600,000 per episode for the TV series, whereas Baker is speculated to have gotten much less than that. The exact figures of Baker have not been released by Naughty Dog as of now, but he is certainly the highest-paid voice actor in the industry with a net worth of over $6 million.

Standard SAG-AFTRA rates in 2013 were not that high. The amount paid to voice actors at the time was around $200-$400 per hour for voice work and $800-$1500 per day for motion capture. Even after Baker’s experience in the industry and performing the lead role in a major AAA game like The Last of Us, he might not have earned more than $50,000 for the entire project.

Both Pascal and Baker Played The Role of Joel With Finnese

The Last of Us in-game
The Last of Us is one of the most successful franchises. Image Credit: Naughty Dog

Pascal built upon the foundation of the game Baker was a part of. He took elements from his characterization techniques and gave them a touch of his style, which managed to build an amazing character.

Both actors are immensely skilled in their crafts. Baker embodied the role of Joel in the first place back in 2013 when he was shooting for the first part of The Last of Us, whereas Pascal joined the team 7 years later.

Video game voice actors generally tend to earn less compared to live-action actors. Even for a highly successful game like The Last of Us, Baker must not have earned a lot of money. The speculation for his salary is based on his current market value, estimated at around $6 million compared to Pascal’s net worth of over $10 million. What do you think about it? Let us know in the comments below.