While our idea of easy money might be spending £1 on a scratch card and getting £2 back, for celebrities it's a far different game.
Aside from their main career, which hardly calls for hours of hard labour, they're often tempted to the dark side of endorsement with the promise of quick cash for barely any work.
But once their day/hour of graft is over, that horrible feeling starts to rise from the pit of their stomach and they start questioning what the hell they've just done and, more importantly, when will it surface on YouTube?
Even those 'smart' ones who travelled all the way to Japan to flog their faces have suffered endless ridicule. Because apparently the internet is pretty big over there now...
Here's our tribute to the stars who've chosen dollars over dignity.
Flies like a butterfly, stings like a bee and requires pesticide to kill cockroaches. One of the greatest boxers of all time decided that respect, worldwide success and all-round awesomeness weren't enough for him and endorsing a range of roach-killing products was the way to go. Not only did he make this shuddering ad but Ali also allowed his face to be used on the packaging of every trap. George Foreman, we forgive you. At least your grill dramatically cuts our fat intake...
Mikhail Gorbachev - Pizza Hut
So firstly before we get too high-and-mighty about this one, greed was not the pure motive. The former Soviet President donated his earnings from this ad, to promote the edge pizza, to his not-for-profit foundation. However this foundation is set up to research Russian politics, a cause we can't really believe as justification for this bizarre commercial. Who ever thought they'd hear the terms "economic ruin" and "edge of chaos" in a Pizza Hut advert?
Jamie Lee Curtis - Activia
There are many things you don't want your boyhood crush to end up doing. While doubling in size and marrying your dad are pretty high up there, watching her talking about bowel movements on TV is also a strong contender. Sadly Jamie Lee Curtis just loved Activia/money too much to worry about that and pawned yoghurt without a care for our feelings. Her nude scene in Trading Places just doesn't deserve pausing so much now...
Sean Connery - Biogurt
Continuing the bizarre trend of actors deciding to sign their soul away using yoghurt as ink, Sean Connery's lowest moment (yes, even lower than The Avengers) sees him sharing a car with a Japanese rabbit and ending up at a giant pot of the white stuff. Resembling a frenzied fever dream, the ad seems to be pushing a yoghurt with hallucinogenic qualities.
Keanu Reeves - Suntory Reserve
Showcasing Keanu's expression of choice (befuddlement), this ad follows him through his flat as he witnesses a cat turn into a foxy lady. Oh and he's advertising some sort of whisky, also pushed by Sean Connery in another campaign. Nonsensical but at least Keanu looks as confused as we feel.
Tim Lovejoy - Giovanni Roma Pasta
The least famous of the lot, so probably the most understandable excuse to make money, also manages to be the most cringe-inducing. Let's get the plot of this straight. Falsely believing his Italian neighbour to be a good cook, he pretends that he needs help to cook for his date. She pulls out a packet of pre-prepared pasta and boils it up for him. He then reveals that he has no date and he's fooled her into making dinner for the two of them. How is this supposed to be remotely appealing?
Nicolas Cage - Sankyo
If there's one thing we can trust Nicolas Cage with it's shouting. If we were allowed to name two things then we'd add "freaking the hell out" to the list as well. Smartly those two specialities were utilised to the max in this Japanese commercial for some arcade machine company. From the look of this nightmarish ad (and the FOUR others he did) it looks more like an advert for some sort of anti-psychotic medication.
John Lydon - Country Life
In recent years, anarchy has clearly not proved as profitable as it used to be. After scraping the barrel of human degradation by featuring on I'm A Celebrity, Johnny Rotten took it one step further by starring in a campaign for the most punk foodstuff of all: butter. In the ad, he ponders "Do I love Country Life because it's British?" Well, no he loves it because he's getting paid a lot of money.
Fred Flintsone - Winston Cigarettes
Okay so he's fictional but due to the product being pushed this is still a worthy inclusion. Along with his diminutive friend Barney Rubble, Fred happily puffs away on a cigarette while his wife take on some hard labour. After Barney delivers a chilling speech (to a predominantly young audience) about the virtues of smoking, Fred then shares the joy with Wilma and ends with a poorly conceived ditty. Let's just hope Bedrock had a sufficiently staffed oncology ward.
Arnie - Alinamin
In this Japanese ad, Arnie seems to be pushing an energy drink that results in total, uncontrollable mania. Sort of like Red Bull combined with adrenaline. Annoyingly ends with the rather literal scene of Arnie enthusiastically throwing money around, while laughing directly at us. Yes, we know you got paid a lot of money for this. Consider our faces officially rubbed in it.
