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Alex Honnold Reveals “Embarrassing” Paycheck for Netflix’s Taipei 101 Free Solo Climb
Alex Honnold doesn’t play any free solo by ear.
And part of his preparation means having the proper music to back his epic climbs—including his Jan. 24 (Jan. 25 local time) climb up Taipei 101, the 11th tallest building in the world standing at 1,667 feet in the capital of Taiwan.
“It was mostly Tool,” Alex revealed to Variety of his playlist in an interview published Jan. 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.”
But beyond liking the genre, the progressive metal band’s music played a practical role, too—especially when it came to navigating the skyscraper’s architecture, including the geometric façade dubbed bamboo boxes and the spiraling metal "dragons" decorating the corners.
“Part of the appeal of music is that actually it helps me with pacing,” Alex explained. “Each bamboo box had been taking me about five to six and a half minutes. I just know how long the songs are. So it gives you a sense of if you’re going fast or slow."
However, at many times throughout the climb, "it all kept cutting out anyway," Alex recounted, "and I couldn’t really hear and I was kind of like, ‘Whatever. I’m just doing my thing.’”
And in those moments the 40-year-old—who is the only person to have free soloed the 3,000-foot El Capitan in Yosemite National Park—did lose his music, he had another soundtrack backing his climb: the gasps and cheers from the assembled crowd.
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As for whether the reactions were distracting, Alex reflected, “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.”
In fact, it gave the climber—who is dad to two kids with wife Sanni McCandless—an experience to which he isn’t accustomed.
“As a climber, you never experience that,” he explained. “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.”
That isn’t the only comparison Alex made between his climb—which was streamed on Netflix—and professional leagues like the NFL. For the Free Solo star, he knows his mid-six figure paycheck for the climb doesn’t quite compare to what some other athletes make.
Alex Honnold/Instagram
"Actually, if you put it in the context of mainstream sports, it’s an embarrassingly small amount," he told the New York Times in an interview published Jan. 23. "You know, Major League Baseball players get like $170 million contracts. Like, someone you haven’t even heard of and that nobody cares about."
Yet, for Alex, his climbs are never about the money—especially not Taipei 101, which made history as made history as the highest free solo climb of an urban structure in history.
"If there was no TV program and the building gave me permission to go do the thing,” he explained, “I would do the thing because I know I can, and it’d be amazing.”
For more on athlete’s sky-high paychecks, read on.
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Cristiano Ronaldo
For many sports stars, Cristiano Ronaldo's salary is goals. After all, the Portuguese soccer player regularly tops lists of highest-paid athletes.
In June 2025, Ronaldo signed a two-year extension with Al-Nassr FC in Saudi Arabia. And while the exact value of the deal wasn't revealed, multiple outlets reported he received an annual salary of approximately $200 million when he first signed with the team in 2022 after leaving Manchester United in England.
Eduardo Carmim Eduardo Carmim/SPP/Shutterstock
Lionel Messi
Lionel Messi kicked off his time at Inter Miami CF with a big check. The annualized average guaranteed compensation for the Argentine player—who signed a two-and-a-half-year contract with the David Beckham-owned team in 2023 after having previously played for Paris Saint-Germain and Barcelona—is more than $20.4 million, with a current annualized base salary of $12 million, per the MLS Players Association's 2025 salary guide.
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Alex Morgan
However, pay gaps still exist when comparing the salaries of male and female sports stars. Case in point? There were no women on Forbes' 2025 list of top 50 highest-paid athletes.
Alex Morgan—who retired from soccer in 2024 after playing her last game with the San Diego Wave—came in at No. 16 on the outlet's ranking of highest-paid female athletes last year. The publication estimated the World Cup champ earned $600,000 on-field and $7 million off-field (scoring some solid endorsement deals) in 2024.
And while there have been strides to bridge the pay gap (with U.S. Soccer becoming the first federation to equalize FIFA World Cup prize money for the country's women's and men's national teams), there is still a long way to go until it's a more equitable playing field.
Matt Kryger/NBAE via Getty Images
Caitlin Clark
After being the No. 1 overall selection in the 2024 WNBA draft, Caitlin Clark signed a four-year contract with the Indiana Fever that, according to The Athletic, was worth $338,056 and resulted in her receiving a $76,535 salary her rookie year.
Many were shocked by the figures considering the base salary for NBA players is much higher.
Caitlin also has endorsement deals, including one with Nike that The Athletic reported was worth $28 million.
Ezra Shaw/Getty Images
Stephen Curry
Topping ESPN's list of NBA players' salaries for the 2025 to 2026 season is Stephen Curry, with the outlet reporting he raked in $59.6 million. However, the Golden State Warriors weren't going to miss their shot at having the guard play longer.
In August 2024, Steph signed a $62.6 million extension that keeps him on the team through 2027, his agent confirmed to CNBC.
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LeBron James
Also dunking all the way to the bank? LeBron James. According to ESPN's list, the Los Angeles Lakers forward made $52.6 million during the 2025 to 2026 season.
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Coco Gauff
Coco Gauff is also serving up major moves.
The tennis champ reigned at the top of Forbes' list of highest paid female athletes in 2024 with an estimated $34.4 million in total earnings that year ($9.4 million on-court and $25 million off).
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Naomi Osaka
Naomi Osaka appears to be acing her brand deals, too.
Forbes reported the Grand Slam title holder from Japan pulled in an estimated $12.9 million in 2024, and that $12 million of that sum came from income earned outside of her match winnings.
Tom Weller/VOIGT/GettyImages
Simone Biles
Simone Biles got the gold in more way than one.
According to Forbes' list, the Olympic gymnast earned an estimated $11.2 million in 2024 (with $11 million of that total reportedly coming outside of her competition earnings).
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Travis Kelce
If you're trying to fill the blank space on how much Travis Kelce makes playing for the Kansas City Chiefs, here's the answer: The tight end signed a two-year deal in 2024 worth $34.25 million, according to NFL Network Insiders Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero.
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Patrick Mahomes
As for his teammate Patrick Mahomes, the quarterback scored a pretty penny when he signed a 10-year contract with the Chiefs in 2020 worth $450 million, according to his agency Equity Sports.
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Josh Allen
The Buffalo Bills weren't going to fumble the opportunity to keep Josh Allen on their team. In March 2025, the quarterback inked a six-year deal that, per Rapoport, is worth $330 million (with $250 million guaranteed).
Duncan Williams/CSM/Shutterstock
Russell Wilson
Russell Wilson touched down on a new team.
After previously playing for the Seattle Seahawks, Denver Broncos and Pittsburgh Steelers, the quarterback signed a one-year contract with the New York Giants in March 2025 worth $10.5 million, per NFL Network Insiders' Rapoport, Pelissero and Mike Garafolo. However, the trio reported Russell could receive up to $21 million on the deal through incentives.
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Aaron Rodgers
Stepping in as the Steelers' quarterback is Aaron Rodgers, who previously played for the New York Jets and the Green Bay Packers.
And while the QB will be wearing No. 8, his paycheck reflects a much bigger number. The one-year contract he signed in June 2025 is worth $13.65 million with $10 million guaranteed, per NFL Network Insiders Rapoport and Pelissero. However, the Insiders noted Aaron could earn up to $19.5 million through incentives.
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