The Big Bang Theory cast get paid HOW much?
Prepare to feel very disappointed with your pay packet, or lack of, because the cast of The Big Bang Theory have one hefty salary.
Jim Parsons (Sheldon), Johnny Galecki (Leonard) and Kaley Cuoco (Penny) are on a salary of $1 million per episode according to Deadline and People, and since the show currently runs at 24 episodes per season, these three actors are making $24 million every year!
What's more, it's thought that the show's stars have also upped their ownership on the show, as well as production deals, bonuses and all sorts of other perks that essentially equal a LOT more moolah.
In fact, after a very profitable 10 seasons on the show, new findings show that by the time the 12th (and potentially final) outing of the show has aired, the key players could have made more than $139 million each.
Even more shocking, is the fact that they were on 'just' (we say that in the loosest sense of the word) on a reported $325,000 before the negotiations for a pay rise occurred back in 2014.
Simon Helberg (Howard Wolowitz) and Kunal Nayyar (Raj Koothrappali), make about 80% of their castmates' $1 million salary, reportedly making $750,000 per episode. Originally, they were both being paid $100,000 per episode.
Big Bang creator Chuck Lorre recently told E! News: "Everybody should be very successful and happy and rich. They earned it. It's a great cast. It's their time."
But, believe it or not, they aren't actually the highest paid TV stars of all time, so we've rounded up the facts and figures from Time and Forbes to bring you the names of the lucky men and women who have earned serious mega bucks over the years.
FYI we've concentrated on actors and actresses, but we feel it necessary to tell you that Judge Judy earns a reported $47 million per year. Yes, FORTY-SEVEN MILLION DOLLARS. Good on ya, Judes.
15. Glee
It's no surprise that Lea Michele, Jane Lynch and Matthew Morrison are singing and dancing with utter joy - they're being paid $80,000 per episode (£63,000).
14. New Girl
Zooey Deschanel makes a pretty comfortable $125,000 per episode (£100,000) playing Jess. Not too shabby.
13. Game of Thrones
Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister), Lena Headey (Cersei Lannister), Kit Harington (Jon Snow), Emilia Clarke (Daenerys Targaryen) and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau (Jaime Lannister) are on $500,000 per episode (£399,000). Or maybe it'll get cut altogether… who knows who will die next?
12. Breaking Bad
It wasn't just crystal meth that Bryan Cranston was making as Walter White, there was also $225,000 per episode (£180,000). Aaron Paul on the other hand was on $150,000 (£120,000) per episode.
11. How I Met Your Mother
Alyson Hannigan, Neil Patrick Harris, Josh Radnor, Jason Segel and Cobie Smulders were earning a reported $225,000 per episode (£180,000), or around $5 million per year.
10. Homeland
Claire Danes may look like she is going through the most stressful acting job of all time playing Carrie, but the $250,000 per episode pay cheque (£200,000) probably eases the pain. Think how many massages that could by.
9. True Blood
Alexander Skarsgard, Anna Paquin and Stephen Moyer earn $275,000 per episode (£220,000) of True Blood. It's pretty generous considering we'd roll around with Alexander Skarsgard for free.
8. Mad Men
Ever wondered how Don Draper keeps himself looking so sharp? Well, a hefty salary helps. Jon Hamm earns $275,000 per episode (£220,000) of Mad Men, that's around $3.5 million per year.
7. The Simpsons
Don't worry, we haven't totally lost our minds, we know that The Simpsons are cartoons. But their voice artists aren't and Dan Castellaneta (Homer), Julie Kavner (Marge) and Yeardley Smith (Lisa), earn $300,00 per episode (£240,000).
6. Grey's Anatomy
Ellen Pompeo earns $350,000 per episode (£280,000) on the medical drama. Which is almost as much as it costs us in tissues when we're watching it.
5. Two and a Half Men with Ashton Kutcher
Before the Big Bang raises, Ashton Kutcher was the highest paid actor currently on TV, earning $750,000 per episode (£600,000) . His co-star Jon Cryer wasn't far behind with $600,000 (£479,000).
4. Friends
Jennifer Aniston, Courteney Cox, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Matthew Perry rivalled The Big Bang stars, earning $1million per episode (£800,000). Worth every penny, if you ask us.
3. Home Improvement
Yeah, you know, the show with that man who likes DIY. As shocking as it may seem, the show became one of the most watched sitcoms in America and Tim Allen, who played Tim Taylor, earned a reported $1.25 million per episode (£1 million).
2. Everybody Loves Raymond
To be fair, he did play the lead and Ray Romano earned an estimated $1.25 million per episode as Raymond Barone (£1 million).
1. Two and a Half Men with Charlie Sheen
Wow, this show really knows how to pay its lead actors, eh? Charlie Sheen earned a reported $1.8 million per episode (£1.4 million) playing Charlie Harper. Yes, that's $1.8 million PER EPISODE. We estimate roughly half of that was spent on drinking Tiger Blood.
* Disclaimer: We missed out the cast of shows like NCIS because… yawn. Plus, we figured you'd rather know about Glee than Law and Order: SVU. All conversions are estimates correct at time of going to press.
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