Starring in the E4 sitcom has since opened up a very lucrative venture for the actor
Here is the creative way The Inbetweeners star James Buckley was able to use his role on the show to make himself a millionaire.
Buckley, 37, made his name as one of the leading actors on E4’s coming of age sitcom alongside Simon Bird, Blake Harrison and Joe Thomas back in 2008.
The actor has since gone on to star in a number of projects, including play 2:22 A Ghost Story and Only Fools and Horses prequel Rock & Chips. However, Buckley arguably remains best known for shouting ‘Bus w**kers’ out of car windows and making up grandiose lies about his sex life as bragging teenager Jay Cartwright.
Buckley is best known for his role in the coming of age sitcom (E4)
Rather than distance himself from the role, Buckley has been more than happy to capitalise off his popularity for playing Jay – a decision which has since turned out to be a very lucrative one for the actor.
During the Covid-19 lockdown, Buckley made the decision to join US website Cameo, which allows celebrities to earn money by creating personalised videos for fans. The actor may not have realised at the time but the platform would go on to become a major source of income in the following years, turning him into a millionaire.
Explaining how the platform changed his life during an interview on former Made in Chelsea star Spencer Matthews’ podcast Big Fish, Buckley explained: “It was a godsend financially. But I never wanted to take the p*ss, again I’m in the business of making people happy – I don’t want to rip people off, I charge 40 quid.
“Two mates can go in 20 quid each for their other mate down the pub and I call him a bus w**ker and take the p*ss out of him and it makes a lot of people happy,” he continued, adding that the majority of his videos feature the Jay Cartwright persona because ‘that’s what people want’.
“You’re a Cameo millionaire?” Matthews questioned, to which Buckley admitted: “Yeah, Yeah I am.”
See, sometimes it pays to be remembered for playing one role.
Buckley photographed with former The Inbetweeners co-star Joe Thomas (Dave Benett/Getty Images)
Buckley recently reflected on the sitcom amid increased calls for a reunion from nostalgic fans. Despite co-star Bird recently shutting down any hope of a reunion, Buckley was more than happy to gush about his love for The Inbetweeners, telling MailOnline that he ‘doesn’t mind it’ when people quote the show to him in public.
“I don’t mind it – it just makes people happy and you stop there and have a little chat about what it was like to do and people’s eyes light up,” he said.
“That’s the best part of the job, meeting people who really like what you do. I hope it doesn’t stop, I love it. It’s a two way thing – I enjoy it as much as them.”
Featured Image Credit: buxtagram / Instagram / Brendon Thorne/Getty Images
