Has earned over $12 million

Eva Longoria is still receiving checks for her $6 million investment in 2014's “John Wick” more than a decade later, she recently confirmed to Business Insider. Earlier this month, it was revealed that Longoria had quietly stepped in to close the film's $6 million financing gap, less than 24 hours before production would have shut down entirely. Essentially, there wouldn't be a John Wick franchise without Longoria's contribution, which saved the original film.

“That's right. “By the way, I was still in my infancy,” Longoria said while talking about her “John Wick” investment for the first time. “My balance was very new and it was a lot of money, and I asked myself, 'How does this work?' I had no idea. I would like to say that I was an investing genius and simply knew what I was doing and calculated my risk. No, none of that.

“An agent, and he wasn't even my agent, he called me and said, 'You have money, you should put your money here,'” she continued. “And I didn’t even know how a movie was made. I asked, “What do you mean by gap funding?” But looking back, I learned: I love investing in people. You can tell me you're starting a chicken farm, but if you're damn passionate about it and you've done the work and you know the market, I mean, (Chad Stahelski and David Leitch) have done their job. They put in their 10,000 hours as stunt guys and second unit directors; They had seen all the bad movies and knew how to make a good one. That was it. They were undeniably passionate and I knew they would produce an undeniable product.”

When asked if she was still receiving checks from her “John Wick” investment, Longoria replied, “Yes. What makes me mad is that I had no connection with the others. This was a one-time thing. That was the gamble. But that was my only mistake, that I didn’t stick to all the films.”

The success of 2014's “John Wick” spawned a franchise that has since grossed $1 billion across four films. Although Longoria wasn't involved in any of the sequels, the franchise's enduring popularity keeps the 2014 original constantly watched, so checks continue to come in for her. So how much did she make?

“You know, I should check. Certainly more than double ($6 million), Longoria replied.

As the unsung hero behind the “John Wick” franchise, Longoria said it's always fun to meet the film's directors or lead actor Keanu Reeves in Hollywood.

“(Keanu and I) met through his girlfriend Alexandra. We know her through a few friends and met her and Keanu at an art event,” Longoria remembers. “Keanu said, ‘I’d like to take you to dinner; “We should celebrate 10 years.” So we toasted to 'John Wick.'

Visit Business Insider's website to read Longoria's interview in full.