‘House Party’ Star A.J. Johnson Made More Selling Rights To Movie Scene Than From Filming

“House Party” star A.J. Johnson is opening up about how much more she made selling her rights to a scene from the movie than from filming.

Johnson starred as Sharane in the 1990 cult classic alongside Christopher “Kid” Reid, Christopher “Play” Martin, and Tisha Campbell (Sydney). The film follows a pair of high school students who throw the ultimate house party while Play’s parents are out of town.

One of the most popular scenes from Play’s epic house party features a dance battle between him and Kid against Sharane and Sydney. Choreographed by Johnson, who appeared throughout the film, the dance battle became one of the most iconic dance scenes in movie history.

Johnson recently appeared on Jemele Hill’s “Unbothered” podcast where she revealed the $4,000 she was paid to shoot the movie that took two months to film. Three years after the film’s release, Johnson and Christopher Martin were contacted by Burger King to have their scenes from the movie included in a televised advertisement.

That’s where the pair made real money for their work compared to the “four grand” they each received for starring in the Reginald Hudlin flick.

“Once the movie came out and it was such a hit, Burger King came and asked Play and I if we would sign the rights to one of our scenes for a commercial,” Johnson shared.

“We made more money on that commercial than we made doing the movie.”

Hudlin’s “House Party” was an instant hit. It grossed over $26 million at the box office from an estimated budget of $2,500,000. A franchise was born with “House Party 2” released in 1991 and “House Party 3” in 1994.

In 2023, LeBron James’ SpringHill company released a remake of the film that starred Jacob Latimore, Tosin Cole, and Kid Cudi, among others. The year before, The Library of Congress added the original “House Party” to the National Film Registry.

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