Adult movie actors are speaking up about the money they make in their job, and it's surprising.

Lana Rhoades, for example, talked about her early days in the industry when she was just 19. She said she only got "pickles" for filming sex scenes after being in the business for eight months.

Others talk about how being in adult movies has given them financial freedom, which they might not have had otherwise.

This has started a big discussion about how much money people can make in a job where they have to be completely open.

People are arguing a lot about the adult movie industry, both people who criticize it and people who work in it.

In the past few years, many actors have shared their experiences—some say good things about the industry, while others say it doesn't protect them enough and doesn't pay them fairly.

So, how much do adult movie actors really get paid for being in scenes?

Steven Hirsch, who owns one of the biggest adult movie studios, Vivid, told CNBC that new actors usually get paid more because they're new and exciting, so they can ask for more money for different sex acts.

But how much they keep making depends on how popular they get.

CNBC says that, on average, actors get paid between $800 and $1,000 for a regular scene between a man and a woman. But if they're new and don't have much help, they might only get $300.

On the flip side, actors who are really famous can ask for as much as $1,500 or even $2,000 for each scene they're in.

For scenes that show more intense things, like extreme acts, the pay goes up to around $1,800 to $2,500.

Derek Hay, who started LA Direct Models, said performers sometimes get paid between $2,000 and $6,000 for doing something new, like their first scene with three, four, or more people.

This difference in pay also affects male actors.

According to CNBC, male actors usually get $500-600 for each scene or day they work.

Male stars who are more well-known might get between $700 and $900, and the very famous ones can ask for up to $1,500.

Valentina Nappi, another actor, told VICE she got "$1,140 for a regular scene" when she first came to the US, and she was already pretty famous.

However, Luca Ferrero said that in Europe, male actors usually only get $533 or less for each scene.

Franco Roccaforte said he used to make about $16,000 a month in the 90s, and now he wouldn't take less than $1,000 for a scene.

Hay also talked about how people think actors in adult movies make a lot of money:

"I don't think that adult stars make as much money as the general public perceives them to make."

"I don't think there's anybody, even the biggest stars, who are making more than half a million a year, but if some of the top stars are making $300,000-400,000 per year, by most people's perception that would still be a lot of money I think."