Jim Parsons ranked highest-paid TV actor by ‘Forbes’ With $25 Million Take

Jim Parsons and his Big Bang Theory co-stars are running the table when it comes to TV star salaries.

The male members of the cast snagged the four top spots on Forbes’ list of highest-paid TV actors, leading with Parsons, who earned $25.5 million for playing Sheldon from June 1, 2015 to June 1, 2016.

Johnny Galecki, Simon Helberg, and Kunal Nayyar took the next three spots, netting $24 million, $22.5 million, and $22 million, respectively. NCIS’ Mark Harmon nabbed the fifth spot with $20 million for the CBS crime series.

According to Forbes, “our earnings estimates are based on data from Nielsen NLSN -0.15%, Box Office Mojo and IMDB, as well as interviews with agents, managers, lawyers and industry insiders”.

In 2014, Parsons ranked just ninth on the list but his earnings rocketed after he and fellow stars Johnny Galecki, who is second on the list, and Kaley Cuoco signed a new deal with CBS, reportedly worth $1 million an episode.
On the actress’ side, while Kaley Cuoco is hardly pinching pennies for playing Penny — she made $24.5 million, making her the second-highest earner on Big Bang— that wasn’t enough to overtake Modern Family star Sofia Vergara, who made a staggering $43 million, thanks to multiple lucrative endorsement deals.

The World’s Highest-Paid TV Actors 2016

1. Jim Parsons = $25,500,000
2. Johnny Galecki = $24,000,000
3. Simon Helberg = $22,500,000
4. Kunal Nayyar = $22,000,000
5. Mark Harmon = $20,000,000
6. Ty Burrell = $12,500,000
7. Nathan Fillion = $12,000,000
8. Jesse Tyler Ferguson = $12,000,000
9. Ray Romano = $12,000,000
10. Ed O’Neill = $11,500,000
11. Eric Stonestreet = $11,000,000
12. Kevin Spacey = $10,500,000
13. Michael Weatherly = $10,000,000
14. David Duchovny = $10,000,000
15. Justin Chambers = $9,500,000

And while all of the above are crushing it on the small screen, none of these celebs could top Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, who was named Forbes’ highest-paid movie actor this year.

As quoted by Forbes “The Rock” the world’s 20 highest-paid actors earned a combined $703.5 million between June 1, 2015 and June 1, 2016, before management fees and taxes. Figures are based on data from Nielsen, Box Office Mojo and IMDB, as well as interviews with agents, managers and lawyers”