While new shows and stars constantly rise to fame in the dynamic world of television, there are some that continue to make waves long after they have stopped airing new episodes.
One such instance is the iconic sitcom, ‘Everybody Loves Raymond.’ It might come as a surprise to many that Ray Romano, the show’s lead, still makes around $18 million a year from this hit sitcom.
‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ aired between 1996 and 2005 and during its time, garnered a massive audience and went on to become a mainstay in households worldwide. The immense popularity led to its syndication, making it available on various platforms and networks, and its reruns continue to draw significant viewership.
But how much did Ray Romano earn during the show’s peak? Well, he was reportedly one of the highest-paid stars in television history.
According to Cheat Sheet, Romano was raking in somewhere between $1.7 and $1.8 million per episode. A staggering figure that not many TV stars have ever come close to matching.
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While Romano’s paycheck delighted him, it became a point of contention among the rest of the cast members. As CheatSheet reports, the supporting actors felt they were significantly underpaid, considering their substantial contributions to the show’s success.
This discrepancy led to a quasi-strike, disrupting the harmony on the set. Eventually, the supporting actors received substantial raises, and the show went on to entertain audiences worldwide for nearly a decade.
Fast forward to the present, ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ continues to air in syndication, and Romano continues to reap the benefits of his successful tenure as the sitcom’s lovable lead.
Vanity Fair reported that Romano still earns up to $18 million a year, a figure that outdoes most current television stars.
Considering the frequency of the show’s reruns, this number isn’t entirely shocking. Several stars from other syndicated shows, like ‘Friends’ and ‘Seinfeld,’ have also enjoyed substantial residual incomes.
However, unlike the lead cast of ‘Friends,’ who all had syndication earnings written into their contracts, it’s unclear how much the rest of ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’s’ cast makes from the reruns.
The success of ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ was a major financial catalyst for Romano. However, his accomplishments aren’t limited to the sitcom. His ventures on the big screen have also significantly contributed to his wealth.
As of 2023, Celebrity Net Worth estimates Romano’s total net worth to be a whopping $200 million, with ‘Everybody Loves Raymond’ accounting for a substantial part of it.
In the end, it’s safe to say that while audiences worldwide loved Raymond, Raymond himself must love the continuing financial benefits the show brings him, long after its original run ended.
