Here’s How Much Jennifer Aniston and Other Actors Get Paid for Their Reruns (2024)

FAQs

How much does Jennifer Aniston get paid for Friends reruns? ›

According to USA Today, all of the Friends cast members—Courtney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, and Matthew Perry—receive 2% of the syndication revenue, or about $20 million per person annually, out of the $1 billion in revenue generated for Warner Bros.

earns $1 billion a year from "Friends." Of that amount, 2% -- or $20 million -- goes to each of the stars every single year.

While the exact amount isn't actually known, cast members have revealed that the reruns pay them 6% of their original salaries. If a star made a mere $150,000 per episode across all 20 seasons, that would come in around $200,000 per year in royalties.

At the time, Fox News speculated that Sheen would go on to earn $100 million more from the show on royalties alone. In 2016, however, the Associated Press reported that Sheen sold his profit participation rights for $27 million.

Jennifer Aniston played the role of Rachel Green and was considered the highest-paid actor with a net worth of $320 million (£258.5m). However, all the actors in the main cast were paid equally on Friends, with $1 million per episode for the final two seasons.

For TV programs, residual pay to SAG-AFTRA are due: Network prime time - 30 days after the air date. Non-prime time network - 30 days after the air date. Syndication - four months after the air date.

You do not need to be a member of the union to receive SAG residuals. However, only principal performers working on SAG contracts receive SAG royalties; background actors don't receive residual checks.

Process. Residuals are administered by the unions—SAG-AFTRA, the Directors Guild of America (DGA), and the Writers Guild of America (WGA)—for their members, who are paid between one and four months after the air date. According to SAG-AFTRA, it processes around 1.5 million residual checks a year.

Both royalties and residuals are generated when content is screened on TV, a streaming service, in a theater or as digital or physical media, but only residuals are mandated by unions. “The main difference between residual income and royalties is that royalties are outside of the guild realm," said Green.

Do full house actors get paid for reruns? ›

'Full House' Royalties

The “Full House” cast never saw much in terms of residuals for reruns of the original show, according to Bob Saget. “There's no 'Full House' money. I didn't own the show. You get nothing.

That's because extras get no residuals. When you become a bigger part of the show, however, that changes. The next step up from an extra is a day player. If you get a line of dialogue in a show or have a scripted physical interaction with a character (called “special business”), you qualify for residuals.

Two and a Half Men — Charlie Sheen

From 2010-2011 he was reportedly the highest earning television star in history, earning $1.8 million per episode.

How much money did John Krasinski make from The Office? With John Krasinski earning $20,000 per episode for the show's first three seasons and $100,000 (or more) per episode for the series' remaining six seasons, that would have netted the actor at least $14,720,000—without counting bonuses or royalties.

But when Sheen asked Lohan what she was earning and she replied only $100,000, the numbers didn't add up. “So I just gave her $100,000 of their money,” he says.

1 'The Simpsons'

The Simpsons, Friends and the Most Profitable TV Shows of All Time.

How much does Macaulay Culkin make in royalties from Home Alone? Culkin doesn't make royalties from Home Alone.

Joey may have been the hottie of the show, but in real life LeBlanc's net worth comes in at the bottom of the Friends pile (according to The Tab, at least). After Friends ended, he had a short-lived stint in a spin-off show, Joey. It only lasted two seasons.

Rumor has it that Willis was paid nothing for his three-episode guest arc on Season 6 of Friends, playing the father of Ross' college-age girlfriend, because of a bet he made with The Whole Nine Yards co-star Matthew Perry. Apparently, the wager was that if The Whole Nine Yards opened at No.

When an actor dies who gets the royalties? ›

Although SAG-AFTRA is responsible for administering these payments, residuals are the personal property of the performer, who may leave them to anyone in a will or trust. If a performer fails to make an estate plan, residuals would then pass under the intestacy laws of the state governing the person's estate.

Residuals are considered the property of the performer and are payable for as long as their work is exhibited somewhere in the world. As property, residuals can be inherited by the performer's benefactor(s) though a last Will and Testament and/or living Trust.

Members and non-members earn residuals through their work on SAG-AFTRA contracts. Learn more about these payments, how to track them and their unique history and terminology below.

Residuals for Deceased Members

In 1977, the Guild negotiated for the member's right to receive residual compensation in perpetuity. As a result, even after your death, you will continue to receive residual compensation if your material is reused.

Residuals/royalties received as compensation for services performed within the City by a person paid on a 1099 are taxable if the person is still engaged in business. If you performed services both in and outside the City, the residuals/royalties is subject to apportionment.

The pay is called “top-of-show.” That's the most a show will pay for a guest star actor, unless that person is a name. On network TV, the rate for a one-hour drama is currently $9,522 (eight days of work) and half-hour comedies pay $5,951 (five days of work).

Does Sheen still receive residuals from 'Two and a Half Men'? Even after being fired from Two and a Half Men, Sheen received royalties from the show—$100 million, in fact. However, this payment was short-lived, as Sheen sold his participation rights for $27 million in 2016.

Extras, stand ins and body doubles are not entitled to residuals.

The history of residuals starts back at the mid-20th century. By the mid-1950s, both SAG and AFTRA had been successful in negotiating residuals for TV programs re-runs.

Residual compensation is really where commercial actors make most of their money. If a National SAG Commercial is shown often, actors will earn anywhere from $5,000 to $60,000 for their one day of work in a commercial! Personally, I made $40,000 in a National TV Spot I acted in for “Brown N Serve” sausage.

Do royalties ever end? ›

For artists in the US, the copyright protection of a song lasts for the lifetime of the copyright holder and an additional 70 years after their demise. This law applies to all bodies of works that have been published since 1978. The payment on these royalties also lasts for the duration of the copyright protection.

Reasonable royalty damages are a measure of damages based on the royalty fee that a licensee, or a patent infringer, would pay the licensor, or patent owner, for the rights to the patented invention in a hypothetical negotiation.

According to the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) pay scale, for a leading role, a Hallmark actor could make between $1,251.00 to $3,575.00 per week. Of course, for bigger stars, that amount could be more.

In attendance were Saget's Full House co-stars, including Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen, Candance Cameron Bure, John Stamos, Dave Coulier, Lori Loughlin, among others.

It's not like he needs it, but George Clooney reportedly earns about $13 million every year just from reruns of “ER,” on which he played Dr. Doug Ross.

Like many hard-working actors out there, some of the biggest names in Hollywood started as extras before becoming famous. So, if you're working hard, wondering if your big break will ever come while you're standing in the background of a film, let some of these actors who started as extras be your inspiration!

How much do extras get paid? A common rate for a single day of background work is between $100 and $200, though extras are paid differently depending on their union status. Generally, nonunion talent will be hired for either a 10- or 12-hour day, with additional pay provided should production run overtime.

Friends may have ended in 2004, but the show remains popular and binge-worthy to this day. As a result of the continued support from fans, the cast continues to make significant profits from their iconic roles, even after giving up their regular spots at the Central Perk.

Gunther, actor James Michael Tyler - who sadly passed away yesterday at 59 - appeared in 147 episodes - the only non-core cast member to be seen in more than 100 shows - but didn't speak in all of them. 'I'm very happy if I get a residual cheque,' he told Bang Showbiz. 'I do get residuals.

Did the cast of Friends all make the same salary? ›

As reported by Business Insider, the "Friends" stars were making good money from the get-go, with all six prominent cast members bringing in $22,500 per episode. Moving on to the second season, the cast members' salaries varied, ranging from $22,500 to $40,000 per episode.

Turns out Aniston's niece Eilish Melick, who recently got married, was the one who inherited her mother's fortune instead of Jennifer Aniston. Eilish Melick recently said 'I do' to her long-time boyfriend in a casual wedding ceremony. She also took to Instagram to post a series of photos with her husband.