Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Budget

What is the budget of Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid?

"Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," an adventure released in 1969, was directed by George Roy Hill and stars Paul Newman, Robert Redford. The production budget was $6,000,000, placing it in the low-budget range for adventure productions of the 1960s.

Key Budget Allocation Categories

While specific budget breakdowns are not publicly available, typical cost drivers for an adventure production like this include:

• Stunts, Action Sequences & Visual Effects: Action films allocate a substantial portion of their budget to choreographing and executing practical stunts, pyrotechnics, and CGI-heavy sequences.
• Above-the-Line Talent (Cast & Director): A-list talent commands significant upfront fees plus backend participation.
• Production Design, Sets & Locations: Action films frequently require multiple international shooting locations, large-scale set construction, vehicle acquisitions and modifications, and specialized equipment , all of which drive production costs well above those of dialogue-driven genres.
• Development: William Goldman first came across the story of Butch Cassidy in the late 1950s and researched intermittently for eight years before starting to write the screenplay.

What were the major cost factors in Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid?

Several factors contributed to the overall production costs of "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid."

• Stunts: Stunts, Action Sequences & Visual Effects is one of the primary cost drivers in adventure productions of this scale.
• Above-the-Line Talent (Cast: Above-the-Line Talent (Cast & Director) is one of the primary cost drivers in adventure productions of this scale.
• Production Design: Production Design, Sets & Locations is one of the primary cost drivers in adventure productions of this scale.

How Does Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid's Budget Compare to Similar Films?

At $6,000,000, Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid sits in the low-budget range. Here is how it compares to productions with a similar budget:

• The Godfather (1972): Budget $6,000,000, Worldwide Gross $245,066,411
• Chinatown (1974): Budget $6,000,000, Worldwide Gross $30,000,000
• The Father (2020): Budget $6,000,000, Worldwide Gross $21,029,340
• I Swear (2025): Budget $6,000,000, Worldwide Gross $8,682,832
• Marcel the Shell with Shoes On (2022): Budget $6,000,000, Worldwide Gross $6,909,209

The median budget for wide-release adventure films in the era ranges from $30 to 80M for mid-budget to $150M+ for tentpoles.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Box Office Performance

"Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" earned $102,308,889 worldwide at the box office. Against a production budget of $6,000,000, the film performed strongly at the box office.

A film typically needs to earn approximately twice its production budget to cover marketing and distribution costs. For "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid," that break-even threshold was roughly $12,000,000. With worldwide earnings of $102,308,889, the film cleared that threshold comfortably.

• Production Budget: $6,000,000
• Worldwide Gross: $102,308,889
• Net Return: $96,308,889
• ROI: approximately 1605.1%

At 1605.1%, "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" earned roughly $17.05 for every $1 invested in production.

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid Production History

William Goldman first came across the story of Butch Cassidy in the late 1950s and researched intermittently for eight years before starting to write the screenplay. Goldman says he wrote the story as an original screenplay because he did not want to do the research to make it as authentic as a novel. The characters' flight to South America caused one executive to reject the script, as it was then unusual in Western films for the protagonists to flee.

The role of Sundance was offered to Jack Lemmon, whose production company, JML, had produced the film Cool Hand Luke (1967) starring Newman. Lemmon, however, turned down the role because he did not like riding horses and felt that he had already played too many aspects of the Sundance Kid's character before. Other actors considered for the role of Sundance were Steve McQueen and Warren Beatty, who both turned it down, with Beatty claiming that the film was too similar to Bonnie and Clyde.

Principal photography took place on-location in Utah and Colorado, and in Mexico. Shooting in Mexico took place in Taxco, and at Estudios Churubusco in Mexico City. [Filming] Principal photography took place on-location in Utah and Colorado, and in Mexico. Shooting in Mexico took place in Taxco, and at Estudios Churubusco in Mexico City.

Awards and Recognition

Won 4 Oscars. 22 wins & 15 nominations total

• Academy Award for Best Original Score, no Musical: Burt Bacharach (42nd Academy Awards)
• Academy Award for Best Cinematography: Conrad Hall (42nd Academy Awards)
• Academy Award for Best Writing, Original Screenplay: William Goldman (42nd Academy Awards)

Critical Reception

After release, reviewers gave the film mediocre grades, and New York and national reviews were "mixed to terrible", although better elsewhere, screenwriter William Goldman recalled in his book Which Lie Did I Tell?: More Adventures in the Screen Trade.