Alex Honnold has always done it for the love of the climb, and his latest comments about being paid what he called an “embarrassingly small amount” by Netflix only reinforce that reputation.
The world-famous climber, who recently tackled the 1,667-foot Taipei 101 without a rope or harness in Netflix’s live “Skyscraper” event, opened up about his compensation.
Alex Honnold Puts His Netflix Pay in Perspective
Netflix“Actually, if you put it in the context of mainstream sports, it’s an embarrassingly small amount,” Honnold, 40, told “The New York Times” in an interview published on January 22. “You know, Major League Baseball players get like $170 million contracts. Like, someone you haven’t even heard of and that nobody cares about.”
He added that it “might” have been the most he’s ever paid for a climb, though it was still “less than his agent aspired to.”
Why Music and Crowd Energy Mattered More Than Money During the Climb
NetflixThe dad of two also revealed some details about the heart-stopping trek up one of the world’s tallest buildings, including what he was listening to on his playlist.
“It was mostly Tool,” Honnold told “Variety” in an interview published on January 24. “It’s a random playlist that I made, that I shared with production. I made it months ago while I was driving. I’ve been training to it a bunch. Basically, rock music that I’ve liked my whole life.”
While rock music might not be what most people reach for when they’re trying to calm their nerves, Honnold said it actually “helps with the pacing” of his climb around the geometric obstacles of the building.
“Each bamboo box had been taking me about five to six and a half minutes,” he told the publication. “I just know how long the songs are. So it gives you a sense of if you’re going fast or slow.”
Unfortunately, throughout his climb, Honnold said that the music continued to cut out.
“It all kept cutting out anyway,” he explained, “and I couldn’t really hear and I was kind of like, ‘Whatever. I’m just doing my thing.’”
Without Tool playing in his ears, he was treated to the continual gasps and shouts from the crowd. However, Honnold said that actually helped.
“I think it was actually kind of motivating or enlivening. This is probably true for all athletes in mainstream sports, when people play and the crowds are roaring,” he said to “Variety.” “As a climber, you never experience that. I was like, ‘No wonder when people are playing in the Super Bowl, it must be super motivating.’ It was my first taste of something like that.”
While Honnold’s climb streamed live on Saturday, January 24, it’s currently available to watch in full on Netflix.
