XR State of Pay Report: Athlete Pay in Advertising Jumps More than 100% as Brands Double Down on Celebrities and Creators

Guaranteed celebrity and creator contracts now drive ad budgets, while ad production expands beyond the coasts XR Extreme Reach research uncovers

LOS ANGELES, CA. — December 8, 2025 — XR (Extreme Reach), the leader in commercial talent payments and advertising operations, today announced the release of its XR 2025 State of Pay report, an in-depth analysis of billions of dollars in advertising talent payments and thousands of commercial productions from 2019 through 2025.

The data reveals a fundamental shift in advertising economics: brands are consolidating the number of productions while dramatically increasing investment in recognizable, high-impact talent, particularly actors, athletes, and content creators while expanding production beyond traditional coastal hubs.

“Advertising is entering a talent-first era,” said John Batter, CEO of XR. “Spending on athletes, celebrities and creators isn’t just rebounding, it’s surpassing all pre-pandemic norms with no signs of slowing. Brands are concentrating budgets around recognizable talent that can break through, and the data shows that strategy is now central to the campaign performance of the world’s biggest brands.”

Key Findings from the XR 2025 State of Pay Report:

• Celebrity Pay Guarantees Reach New Highs
  Total spending on paid celebrity guarantees in advertising, including actors, musicians, athletes and other high-profile personalities, exceeded $1 Billion in 2025, representing more than 47% growth since 2019.
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• Athletes Drive the Fastest-Growing Talent Spend
  Athletes are the fastest-growing paid talent segment, with guarantees (contractually committed compensation) up 106% to more than $250M since 2019. NFL player guarantees more than doubled (+145%), while NBA player guarantees rose more than 200%, reflecting brands’ increasing reliance on sports figures with built-in, loyal audiences.
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• Women’s Hoops Hits a Pay Boom
  Fueled by rising fan demand and a growing roster of WNBA stars, women’s basketball talent drove 176% year-over-year growth in guaranteed talent payments from 2024 to 2025 and more than 300x growth since 2019.
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• The Creator Economy Comes of Age
  Content creator payment guarantees from brands and agencies surged 103% to nearly $45M since 2022, nearly doubling in just three years. “Social Media Personality” guarantees rose from 22% of creator deals in 2022 to 38% in 2025, confirming influencers as permanent, budget-line talent, not experimental spend.
  
  “When social media and lifestyle influencers account for more than half of all creator payment guarantees, it’s clear they’ve become core to commercial talent strategy as well as a key component in cross-media advertising plans,” added Graham McKenna, CMO of XR
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• Advertising Production Expands Beyond the Coast
  While California retains its advertising production crown thanks to Hollywood talent and a strong production infrastructure, regional markets are capturing a growing share of production volume. Texas, Florida, and Virginia collectively grew 27% since 2019, with Virginia alone surging 112%, driven by incentives, lower operational costs, and growing crew bases.
  
  “California hasn’t lost its crown in advertising production, but the map is expanding,” said McKenna. “Utah, Virginia, Florida, and Texas are emerging as serious production hubs, fueled by incentives, skilled crews, and modern infrastructure. The result is a more distributed, more resilient advertising production landscape from coast-to-coast.”
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• A Market Rebuilding and More Concentrated
  While unique advertising productions remain below pre-pandemic levels, production session payments grew 11% year-over-year from 2024 to 2025, signaling a recovery. Brands are offsetting fewer productions by extending production days and generating more content per session, and while celebrities are appearing in more ads, average cast sizes have remained largely unchanged since 2019.

The XR State of Pay reporting period spans 2019 through 2025, examining how the U.S. commercial production industry has recovered from the pandemic and broader economic pressures. The data is sourced directly from contractual and payment activity captured by XR Pay, reflecting real-world talent usage, compensation, and production volume. This gives XR unmatched visibility into the industry’s creative and economic health, as well as the timing and scale of major shifts in production spending patterns.

For access to the full report, contact Marketing@ExtremeReach.com.

About XR‍

XR helps brands manage every aspect of their advertising creative, from talent payments and rights to ad delivery, so every ad lands exactly how and where it should. The XR platform powers millions of ad creative assets for the world’s top brands, simplifying how marketers version ads, archive content, deliver campaigns, pay talent, and track usage rights, all while saving time and money. Headquartered in New York, XR also has offices in Europe, Asia, and Australia. Learn more at www.xr.global.