but apparently it really cost $44 million and then $30 more was embezzled.

The case was heard before a jury in a Los Angeles federal courtroom in May–June 2004. The court heard testimony from Intertainment that according to Franchise’s bank records the real cost of Battlefield Earth was $44 million, not the $75 million declared by Franchise. The remaining $31 million had been fraudulent padding

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battlefield_Earth_(film)

https://bombreport.com/yearly-breakdowns/2000-2/battlefield-earth/

With Franchise pocketing most of the production costs, filming was mostly bare bones. Cinematographer Giles Nuttgens said: “Battlefield Earth had the smallest lighting budget of any film I’ve ever done.” Director Roger Christian penned a response to an article in the LA times about the budget: “The live-action production budget for the film, which was shot in its entirety in 52 days, was less than $14 million. Less than $9 million was then spent on special effects.” Considering what’s on screen, he should be believed. With a reduced salary of a still massive $10 million, Travolta put a reported $5 million of his pay into the production when funds were drying up.

If Travolta was paid $10 million and gave back $5 million to cover costs of the movie, does that mean that $15 million (paid to Travolta and then paid by him) of the budget really only cost $10 million?

I’m guessing that the costs listed for live action production and special effects don’t include people’s salaries. If the Live Action production was $14 million and the special effects were $9 million and Travolta’s salary was $10 Million, that’s $33 million right there. So if I understand correctly, there’s $11 million left for all the other salaries plus the rest of the post-production.