TV Stars Who Took Home Shockingly Massive Paychecks

Contrary to popular belief, making a television show is absolutely a real job. While it might look like it's nothing but glitz and glamor as actors show up to deliver their lines and hit their marks, a ton of unseen work goes into everything that ends up onscreen. For the actors, it can lead to even more labor — especially if they share a hand in writing, producing, or directing.

Still, while we've established that actors have a job that takes skill, time, and effort, it's also worth noting that they're often paid massive amounts of money. Acting may be an important and difficult-to-perfect skill, but you'd be hard pressed to find many other skilled craftsmen that bring home the massive paychecks deposited by these television stars.

Speaking of breaking the $1,000,000-per-episode paycheck barrier, we'd be remiss if we didn't mention the unforgettable Friends, which managed to capture audiences' hearts and NBC Universal's wallet all at once. 

The show grew with its audience for over a decade as the titular buddies struggled with romantic entanglements in a truly mystifying alternate New York where a struggling actor can afford an apartment bigger than a mini-fridge. Friends even managed to launch some movie careers. But while the cast might not have all had equal success following the show, they banded together for equal paychecks in the final seasons. The strong familiarity and consistent popularity of the show meant the main cast had a massive amount of bargaining power — and the six stars took advantage by entering into a joint negotiation for a cool $1 mil each per episode for seasons nine and ten.

Game of Thrones has earned a reputation for its willingness to kill any character, regardless of how important they seem. Of course, that's not quite accurate. Certain characters, like Jon Snow and Daenerys Targaryen, were always going to be central to the plot — they were just hidden by the constant violence and more traditionally heroic characters. 

As the show killed off most of its red herring leads (in one case, at a red wedding), it became a lot clearer which characters were the backbone of the show; as you might expect, this led to some powerful bargaining chips for these actors: Variety reported in 2016 that Kit Harington, Lena Headey, Peter Dinklage, Emilia Clarke, and Nikolaj Coster-Waldau all managed to grab $500,000 per episode. Winter might be coming in the show, but with salaries like that, these stars should have no trouble paying for heating.

Speaking of consistently hitting your marks, Ellen Pompeo of Grey's Anatomy (she's Meredith Grey, so it is her anatomy) receives $575,000 per episode of the long-running medical drama. The show's been through some absolutely bonkers plot lines, but Pompeo has been there every step of the way, from serial killers to body cavity bombs. The show is still incredibly successful, but what did Pompeo do to deserve such a high paycheck? In her own words, "The truth is, anybody can be good on a show season one and two. Can you be good 14 years later? Now, that's a f***in' skill." Well said, Dr. Grey.

Modern television stars aren't the only ones that made big bucks for their roles in beloved shows. The inimitable Cheers, for example, helped a certain Boston bartender make some serious money over the course of its remarkable 11-season run. Ted Danson, who played the womanizing owner of the titular bar, was getting $450,000 per episode toward the end — a heady sum even before you account for inflation. It's hard to argue against Danson deserving it; his roguish charm and expert comedic timing anchored the show's ace ensemble, and has helped keep it as fresh in reruns as it was decades ago. With money like that, Danson was actually out-earning his character even when he was a Red Sox pitcher.

Dramatic and comedic television shows can lead to major paydays for their cast members, but reality stars make sizable paychecks as well. Ellen DeGeneres has built a multimedia empire out of her genial personality and deep roster of celebrity friends: in 2017, her estimated annual income reached $50 million, and that was calculated before the premiere of her new show Game of Games, a ratings boon for NBC. At this rate, DeGeneres could probably give out her own money on her game show and still come out ahead.

While Oprah's profits are inextricably tied to savvy investing and lucrative sponsorships, Judy Sheindlin (better known as Judge Judy) makes her paychecks entirely as the star of Judge Judy. Sources say she makes a mind-boggling $47 million for only 52 days of work, meaning that she makes almost $1 million a day. Wondering about the secret to her success? It's apparently an absolutely ruthless negotiating tactic of refusing to negotiate. "We sit across the table, and I hand him the envelope and I say, 'Don't read it now, let's have a nice dinner. Call me tomorrow. You want it, fine. Otherwise, I'll produce it myself,'" she's explained. "That's the negotiation."