PHOTOSFrom $47 Million a Year to a Paltry $18,000 Per Episode—See What TV's Top Stars Are Earning!
Do your favorite stars rank among the highest paid on TV today?
TV Guide Magazine has come out with its annual survey of salaries and there are some old favorites (Judge Judy, anyone?) as well as some young up-and-comers (including a certain reality star). Click through the gallery for a sampling of what it pays these days to be famous.
Who do you think does and doesn't deserve to be making so much money? Follow me on twitter for more celebrity and TV news, and then share your opinions in the comments section or tweet us @OKMagazine.
Judge Judy Sheindlinf
The verdict is in: Judge Judy Sheindlin is one really rich lady! According to TV Guide, the tough talking arbiter of justice rakes in a eye-popping $47,000,000 a year thanks to syndication deals for her popular courtroom show.
Jon Stewart
Who says politics doesn't pay? Jon Stewart now earns $25-30 million as host of "The Daily Show" on Comedy Central.
Matt Lauer
Matt Lauer may have fallen out of favor lately, but the "Today" host's bank account doesn't reflect tough times! He is still snagging somewhere between $22-$25 million from NBC.
Jay Leno
There's nothing funny about Jay Leno's serious salary—he gets around $20 million to tell jokes and hobnob with celebrities on "The Tonight Show."
David Letterman
It seems $20 million is the going rate for top talk show talent! David Letterman pulls in the same yearly salary for his work on the "Late Show."
Howard Stern
A filthy mouth can get you far! Too bad Howard Stern has to clean up his act on "America's Got Talent" (though for $15 million a year it's probably not a problem).
Jimmy Kimmel
Jimmy Kimmel has ten million reasons to work extra hard each night as the host of "Jimmy Kimmel Live"—the show he created in 2003.
Katie Couric
- 'Who Is This Person?': Jimmy Kimmel Roasts Donald Trump's Wild Claims About 'Black Americans' at Georgia Chick-fil-A
- 'It's Like Wrestling': Jimmy Kimmel Hints Donald Trump's Recent Conflicting Abortion Statement Is Scripted
- Robert Downey Jr. Reacts to Jimmy Kimmel's Oscars Joke About Actor's Past Substance Abuse Struggles
For $10 million a year, it's probably not too annoying to forever be referred to as "America's Sweetheart."
Rachel Maddow
It pays to be the best! Rachel Maddow earns a reported $7 million for her top-rated MSNBC primetime program "The Rachel Maddow Show."
Keith Urban
Don't judge! "American Idol" star Keith Urban is earning $5 million a year to critique kids hoping to make it in entertainment.
Blake Shelton
Blake Shelton is singing all the way to the bank—to the tune of $4 million per cycle as mentor on "The Voice."
Ashton Kutcher
Ashton Kutcher is earning $750,000 for each and every episode of "Two and a Half Men." That could really buy a lot of tiger blood!
Claire Danes
Talk about Homeland Security! Claire Danes is financially very safe with her $250,000 payday for each episode she completes of her Showtime hit, "Homeland."
RuPaul
RuPaul's got She Mail! And it's a $50,000 check for each episode of "RuPaul's Drag Race" he shoots for the Logo network.
Reza Farahan
Reza Farahan's "Shahs of Sunset" earnings of $18,000 an episode doesn't seem like a ton, but it's certainly nothing to sneeze at!
