Pay It Forward
Trevor McKinney, a seventh grader in Las Vegas, launches a bold social experiment called "Pay It Forward," challenging his community to enact selfless good deeds that ripple outward, but as the plan unfolds, he discovers that changing the world may require confronting uncomfortable truths about himself and those he loves.
“When someone does you a big favor, don't pay it back...”
Synopsis
At the age of twelve, Trevor McKinney shared a belief in the inherent goodness of human nature and a determination to improve the world. What set him apart was his eventual success in achieving that goal.
Credits
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How many hands made this film
The scale of the collaboration
A crew of 230+ credited
Why a floor?
This is a minimum, not a total. We only count the credits we’ve captured so far, and coverage is uneven — a blockbuster might show a few hundred names while another of the same size shows a couple dozen. The real crews all ran into the thousands. The number here only grows as full credits are enriched — so we frame it as a floor, never a headcount.
Craft leads on file
Edited by David RosenbloomShot by Oliver StapletonScored by Thomas NewmanDesigned by Leslie DilleySound by Christopher S AudCostumes by Renee Ehrlich KalfusStunts by Jeff Dashnaw
Box Office
2000 · Box office
⚖️ Fell short of break-even — grossed 1.4× its budget
Why 2.5×?
Cinemas keep roughly half of every ticket sold, and a wide release’s marketing often costs about as much again as the film — so a movie needs to gross around 2.5× its production budget just to break even theatrically. It’s a rule of thumb, not the studio’s ledger (home video and streaming come later).
Worldwide gross
$55.7M
US & Canada: $33.5M — 60% of worldwide · International: $22.2M (40%)
Opening weekend: $9.6M — 29% of its US run.
Opening week (7-day): $12.2M — 36% of its US & Canada run.
Peak 2,130 theaters
Full synopsis
Also known as
- Das Glücksprinzipde
- Cadena de favoreses
- Un monde meilleurfr
- Un sogno per domaniit
- (French)Payez au suivant
Release dates around the world4 countries · showhide
- United StatesOct 12, 2000
- CanadaOct 20, 2000
- IsraelJan 19, 2001
- DenmarkJan 26, 2001
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Cast & Crew
230 unique people credited
Top billed cast
Kevin Spacey
as Eugene Simonet
Haley Joel Osment
as Trevor McKinney
Helen Hunt
as Arlene McKinney
Jay Mohr
as Chris Chandler
Jim Caviezel
as Jerry
Jon Bon Jovi
as Ricky McKinney
Angie Dickinson
as Grace
David Ramsey
as Sidney Parker
Gary Werntz
as Mr. Thorsen
Colleen Flynn
as Woman on Bridge
Marc Donato
as Adam
Kathleen Wilhoite
as Bonnie
Supporting cast
51Liza Snyder
as Michelle
Jeannetta Arnette
as Nurse
Hannah Leder
as Thorsen's Daughter
Tina Lifford
as Principal
Loren D Baum
as Rough Kid #1
Nico Matinata
as Rough Kid #2
Zack Duhame
as Rough Kid #3
Shawn Pyfrom
as Shawn
Alexandra Kotcheff
as Alexandra
Bradley White
as Jordan
Christi Colombo
as Christi
Phillip D Stewart
as Phillip
Justin Parsons
as Justin
Myeshia Dejore Walker
as Myeshia
Brenae Suzanne Davey
as Brenae
Molly Bernard
as Molly
Andrew Patrick Flood
as Andy
Tameila N Turner
as Tameila
Julian Correa
as Julian
Carrie Sullivan
as School Girl
Patricia Deanda
as Change Girl
Ryan Berti
as Hallway Kid #1
Gabriela Rivas
as Hallway Kid #2
Carrick O Quinn
as Man in Window
Stephanie Feury
as Sandra
Bernard White
as Cop
Tom Bailey
as Liquid Man #1
Tim Dezarn
as Liquid Man #2
Jonathan Nichols Navarro
as Liquid Man #3
Ron Keck
as Lowlife #1
John Powers
as Lowlife #2
Bob Mccracken
as Creepy Middle-Aged Man
Frank Whiteman
as Doctor
Eugene Osment
as Cop Who Gives Directions
Kendall Tenney
as Male Newscaster
Sue Tripathy
as Female Newscaster
Rusty Meyers
as News Stand Guy
Leslie Dilley
as The Governor
Cynthia Ettinger
Joe Rampino
as Bar patron
Stacy Bellew
as School Girl
Rebeca Cristian
as Battered woman
Johnny Drocco
as Stripper's Boyfriend
Jeremy Dunn
as Diner Patron
Sebastian Feldman
as Looky Lou
Ian Hodgkinson
as Vampiro
Ryan Keating
as Stranded Motorist
Lana Kinnear
as Dancer
Dustin Knouse
as Student, Baseball Player
Billie Perkins
as Restaurant patron
Paul Rausmussen
as Animal-Imitator
Directors
1Writers
3Producers
6Other crew
160Lawrence A Hubbs
as Larry Hubbs
Ricky Cuevas
assistant accountant (uncredited)
Shaun M Mcgovern
assistant accountant
Elaine Patarini
assistant location manager
Nancy Haecker
assistant location manager: Las Vegas crew
Christine Steele
assistant makeup artist
Jordan Corngold
assistant music editor
Candice Campos
assistant production coordinator
China Fox
assistant property master (as China Iwata)
Michael P Sweeney
assistant property master (as Michael Sweeney)
Terry Garcia
assistant sound editor
Jeffrey Cranford
assistant sound editor (as Jeff Cranford)
Parents Guide
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