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Let me say first off that I'm not expecting them to be poor or middle class. But it does seem to me that many of our television starts get exorbitant salaries, which is one of the reasons there are so many commercials, and one of the reasons that series end sooner than we may want (decreasing profit margins for the networks).
Take, for example, the "Big Bang Theory". Before you go off on me, it's one of my favorite shows, and Raj is my favorite character; and Kunal Nayaar seems to be a swell guy. But he ears $750,000 per episode. Which means that on last evening's episode he earned $41,666 per sentence of dialog. Wow!
I'm not moaning and groaning and *itching. I'm just wondering what others think about these television actor salaries.
No, the majority of the actors get 10-40k per episode. If it's a hit, they get a raise but the huge salaries are reserved for a few. Let's say they get bumped to 100k. That's 2.2-2.4 million per season, take away taxes and commissions paid out, you're looking at a million. The average successful series runs 7 years. So no, I don't think they're overpaid. In fact, afaik, they are getting screwed more nowadays bc many are getting hired as guest stars despite really being supporting actors but if they are guests they get paid less and don't get the residual that cast members get.
No, the market decides their worth, the networks/producers will make millions on a hit show like "Big Bang" to use your example, hundreds of millions with reruns/licensing a show like that in future years, the actors should get a piece of that pie. Also most actors live lives of poverty or just getting by until/unless they get steady work & the work is typically short term - background in one episode, extra in one scene, a commercial, a live industrial show, an instructional video, etc.... all pretty low paying & a one time event.
If an actor is lucky to be in a hit show it is typically the only hit most will have in their career & they need to capitalize on it.
Considering the profits made, no, they aren't paid too much. Is TV and those that make it happen over valued in society? Without a doubt. Same with ads, completely overvalued (oh hai google, FB, etc). While people that make a real difference in society and keep things running are grossly underpaid. Way it goes I guess.
I'm not moaning and groaning and *itching. I'm just wondering what others think about these television actor salaries.
Well, first of all, it's Show Biz. That means that big actors & big directors, get most of the money. The sponsoring studios (or investors, or both) get a cut, then the trades & crafts. Only a handful of actors make big money - it's just the nature of the beast, I'm sure that was true of opera & plays, going clear back to Grecian drama.
So who gets parts depends on their agent, their PR machine, their track record on past projects, how well they're liked by the paying public - & talent, although that's harder to discern these days.
Most actors apparently live hand to mouth, just scraping by & hoping to be discovered. If they don't get discovered, then I assume they drop out of acting & go into something that pays more steadily.
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Ready for my close-up, Mr. DeMille
