Despite being deported from Australia before filming began, notorious far-right commentator Katie Hopkins has reportedly still banked her massive TV paycheck.
The Brit was booted out of the country after she bragged on social media about trying to break quarantine rules in a managed isolation hotel.
Hopkins was set to star alongside Caitlyn Jenner in Channel Seven's Celebrity Big Brother.
Production company Endemol Shine reportedly paid Hopkins the full AU$200,000 she would have earned for appearing on the show due to a provision that requires the star-studded cast be paid their full sum even if the job is cancelled early.
"No one can shut Katie up, that's the whole point of why she was hired," one source told the Sydney Morning Herald.
Endemol and Seven also allegedly shelled out AU $60,000 for Hopkins' travel expenses.
While in Australian managed isolation, Hopkins slammed COVID lockdowns as "the greatest hoax in human history" and hatched a plan to breach rules by opening the door to security guards sans face mask.
In an Instagram video, she said she was "lying in wait" to "frighten the s**t out of [the workers] and do it naked with no face mask" - a double exposure.
Australia's Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews confirmed Hopkins' visa had been cancelled, calling the behaviour "appalling".
"It was a slap in the face for all those Australians who are currently in lockdown, and it's just unacceptable behaviour.
"So, personally, I'm very pleased she'll be leaving."
