The main cast of “Friends” receives around $20 million annually from syndication reruns, besides the numerous projects they are each working on individually. A 2015 USA Today article claims that the Friends cast is still paid close to $20 million annually. The royalties from the previous contracts they reached an agreement on are what led to this. Despite being unexpected, the number makes sense due to the constant interest that syndication continues to generate. Friends merchandise and other agreements reportedly bring in around $1 billion annually for Warner Bros. Television. The amount must have been increased in 2022, but there are no reports as such.
Lead cast members' individual projects include Matt LeBlanc's work on BBC's Top Gear and David Schwimmer's work on the Discovery + docuseries "Mysterious Planet," among others. As a result, the cast is typically busy working on their own projects and making money from them. To be completely honest, though, not all of them are making more money than their fixed annual syndication return.
The Friends cast is constantly eclipsed by the Friends characters. Recently, when "Mysterious Planet" was announced, Friends fans immediately thought of David's character "Paleontologist Ross," who appeared in the sitcom.
Friends: The Reunion's Financial Aspects
Friends: The Reunion was highly anticipated since the series concluded in 2004. Marta Kauffman and David Crane, in a way, denied the idea of a reunion in 2014; they said that the show has ended for good and there is no point in stretching the story, which isn’t there. But, in 2016, five of the six leads starred in a tribute to James Burrow, which was sort of a reunion, though it wasn’t one. Fans claimed that the Friends' questions and answers at the event were rushed and forced. The much-anticipated Friends Reunion took place in 2021.
The celebrities were compensated for the reunion; each of the six main cast members received at least $2.5 million to $3 million for their work, according to Variety.
According to a TMZ report, "Friends: The Reunion" was a three-day shoot that took place on several of the show's iconic sets and included a live audience, lest you think it will be little more than the cast hanging out on a sparse film set. The majority of the audience, according to TMZ's source, appeared to be paid union extras who had undergone COVID-19 testing and screening for the shoot.
Aside from being delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic, the special event was also called off in 2020 as a result of financial issues between the cast and Warner Bros. According to the Deadline report, negotiations have "recently come to a standstill," with the financial expectations of the cast and the studio, Warner Bros. "Because of the impasse and the big, eight-figure gap between what the cast is seeking money-wise and what the studio is willing to pay, sources close to the situation consider the special not happening as of right now," the report continued.
Income of Friends’ Cast (2022)
The show's internationally renowned stars have undoubtedly seen an increase in their pay since Friends, where they were paid $1 million per episode in seasons 9 and 10. Although it is not known what each celebrity makes per episode, it can be estimated based on their net worth and other assets. The total base pay for the Friends cast, excluding backend bonuses and ongoing royalties, came to about $90 million for each actor or actress.
Jennifer Aniston
American actress, producer, and spokesperson Jennifer Aniston is worth $320 million. It probably goes without saying at this point that Jennifer Aniston is one of the most well-known and in-demand comedic actresses in Hollywood. Her acting and endorsements regularly bring in over $20 million annually. She earned $1.25 million per episode.
Jennifer was swiftly elevated to one of the highest-paid actresses in the world after receiving an enormous pay raise per episode ($750,000) in the seventh season of Friends. Since then, she has appeared on the list every year. With a total income of $21 million, she was the highest-paid actress in the world in 2003. She now consistently makes $25 million to $30 million a year, plus the residuals from Friends.
Jennifer invested $20.1 million in a house in the Bel Air section of Los Angeles in January 2012. Jennifer spent $13.5 million on a Beverly Hills home in 2006, not long after she and Brad Pitt got divorced, which she then proceeded to completely renovate at a cost of several million dollars. In 2011, she sold this home for $35 million.
Courteney Cox
Courteney Cox is an American actress and producer with a net worth of $150 million. Coquette Productions, which Courteney Cox and her ex-husband David Arquette founded, is owned by Cox. They were married from 1999 to 2012 after meeting on the set of "Scream." In May 2013, their divorce was finalized. They have a daughter together named Coco, who was born in 2004.
A Malibu, California, hilltop home costing $17.15 million was purchased by Courteney Cox in 2007. She listed another house in Malibu that year that was on the beach and was created by renowned architect John Lautner. She asked $33.5 million for this house. In the end, they took $27 million. Former Dodgers owner Frank McCourt made the purchase. She invested about $5 million to purchase two condos in an opulent Beverly Hills Sunset Strip tower. In 2014, Courteney sold Dr. Luke an estate in Beverly Hills for $18 million.
Lisa Kudrow
Lisa Kudrow is an American actress who has a net worth of $130 million. By earning $1 million per episode, she and her co-stars Jennifer Aniston and Courteney Cox broke the record for the highest paid television actresses ever.
The cast negotiated for a significant pay increase prior to season 7. In seasons 7 and 8, they each ended up making $750,000 per episode ($18 million per season). Each cast member made $1 million per episode for seasons 9 and 10. For seasons 9 and 10, that comes to $24 million and $18 million, respectively.
The majority of the mansions Lisa Kudrow owns are in the Los Angeles region. She invested $1.9 million in 1996 to purchase a 6,400 square foot residence in Beverly Hills. She invested $2.4 million in 2001 to purchase a second Beverly Hills house close to Rodeo Drive. She sold a penthouse in Park City, Utah, for $3.6 million in April 2017. How much she spent on the house is unknown.
Matthew Perry
Achieving a net worth of $120 million, Matthew Perry is an American comedian and actor. Chandler Bing was Matthew Perry's most well-known character on the sitcom "Friends." He has also made appearances in a variety of other television shows and motion pictures, including "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip," "Go On," and the movies "Fools Rush In" and "The Whole Nine Yards."
The cast was able to demand backend points on the shows during contract negotiations in 2000, giving them the opportunity to receive royalties from the program's sale into syndication. Jerry Seinfeld and Bill Cosby were the only other TV personalities who had ownership interests in shows up until that point.
Matthew sold a Malibu house for $10.65 million in 2015. He spent $11 million on a brand-new beachfront house in Malibu in 2011. In August 2020, he put this house up for sale for $15 million, and in January 2021, he sold it for $13.1 million. Matthew purchased a sizable penthouse apartment in Century City, California, for $20 million in 2017. In August 2019, he put the penthouse on the market for $35 million. He reduced the cost to $27 million by July 2020. He accepted $21.6 million in June 2021.
Matt LeBlanc
American actor and producer Matt LeBlanc has an estimated net worth of $85 million. His portrayal of Joey Tribbiani on the popular TV sitcom "Friends," which ran from 1994 to 2004, is without a doubt the reason he is best known. Since then, he has continued to make appearances in numerous other movies and television shows.
In 2007, shortly after divorcing Melissa McKnight, Matt invested $7.4 million in a house in the Pacific Palisades neighborhood of Los Angeles. Real estate records indicate that he left the home in 2012 and rented it out for $13,000 per month. He attempted to sell the home for $10 million in 2016. Finally, in 2017, he was able to find a buyer who paid just a little bit less than the $7.4 million that Matt had originally invested in the house ten years earlier. He purchased a 1,000-acre ranch in Santa Ynez, California, in 2002, in addition to two adjacent homes in Encino, California.
David Schwimmer
David Schwimmer, an American actor, director, and producer, has a net worth of $120 million. Despite being best known for his role as Ross Geller in the wildly popular sitcom Friends, David Schwimmer has developed a reputation as a versatile performer with a number of roles in film, on stage, and in voice acting.
In 1998, David Schwimmer spent $425,000 on a Chicago loft. Schwimmer put the condo up for sale for $1.15 million at first, but later lowered the price and sold the building in 2020 for $965,000. In 2001, Schwimmer invested $5.6 million in a sizable mansion in Hancock Park, a wealthy neighborhood of Los Angeles. There are nine bedrooms in the 11,336 square foot house, five fireplaces, and a wood-paneled library. The outdoor area has a pool and tennis courts.
After David Schwimmer initially listed the mansion for $10.7 million in 2011, he lowered the price, and it was ultimately sold in 2012 for just under $8.9 million. In 2010, Schwimmer purchased a townhouse in Manhattan's East Village for $3.9 million, making New York City his permanent residence. The historic 1852 building was then totally destroyed and changed as part of Schwimmer's redevelopment of the land through a limited liability company into a five-story brick townhouse.
FAQs
Q. How does the “Friends” lead cast earn money?
A. The leading cast of Friends earns through acting in various projects, advertisements and endorsements. However, the amount from annual syndication reruns plays a vital role in their income.
Q. What is the net worth of Marta Kauffman?
A. The creator and producer of Friends, Marta Kauffman’s net worth as of 2022, is estimated to be at $400 million.
Q. What is the net worth of Kevin S. Bright?
A. The executive producer and director, Bright's net worth is estimated to be at $180 million, as of 2022.
Q. How much did the “Friends” cast charge for the reunion?
A. Cast members reportedly came to an agreement on a price per person of $2.5 million after financial disputes and the 2020 event's postponement.
