Full House’s Jodie Sweetin Reveals Her Shocking Residual Paycheck

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What ever happened to the predictability of paychecks? Well, Jodie Sweetin has an idea.

The former Full House star recently clarified exactly how much money she’s been making from her role as Stephanie Tanner through payments for reruns of the original show.

Jodie Sweetin, known for playing middle sister Stephanie Tanner on Full House from 1987 to 1995, recently shared on the McBride Rewind podcast that she once received a check for just one penny. She explained that with the shift to streaming, reruns are no longer shown on television, and actors don’t receive payments from those streams.

In the past, actors earned good money from things like TV reruns, syndication, and DVD sales. However, when shows move to streaming services now, those involved often receive much lower payments.

I had some income in my twenties, but it wasn’t consistent,” she explained. “The amount and frequency of work varied, so some months were great, and others meant just being able to afford a nice meal out.

As a big fan, I was really interested to hear what Candace Cameron Bure had to say! She’s a mom to two wonderful daughters – Zoie, who’s 18 and from her previous relationship with Cody Herpin, and Beatrix, 15, with Morty Coyle. She also wanted to make it clear that despite being an actress, she doesn’t live some over-the-top, lavish lifestyle, which I really appreciated hearing!

She emphasized it wasn’t a dependable solution. “I personally drive a used 2023 Hyundai Sonata that I really enjoy,” she explained. “I don’t own my home – I rent – and I’m carrying balances on my credit cards.”

She explained that her life is pretty ordinary. Sometimes things are going great, but other times she feels like she needs to find a more stable, traditional job.

Jodie understands the misconceptions because she’s experienced them herself, but she also admits she used to think the same way.

To be honest, I sometimes catch myself judging people, then I remember they need to work just like everyone else. I realize, ‘Hey, they’re an actor too – they have to make a living.’

Celebrities are increasingly open about how much they earn, and it’s often a surprising amount. Here’s a look at how much some stars have made from their work in television and film.

Although the winner of Dancing With the Stars doesn’t receive a cash prize, everyone who reaches the finale is paid for their time on the show, and they also receive a bonus, according to season 33 champion Jenna Johnson, who won with partner Joey Graziadei.

Johnson explained that winning doesn’t mean a huge payout – it’s more about the trophy. While professional dancers earn around $1,200 to $1,600 per episode, potentially increasing to $100,000 for the whole season (though ABC hasn’t confirmed these figures), celebrities start at a $125,000 salary. As they progress in the competition, celebrities receive bonuses, with semifinalists and finalists earning up to an additional $50,000. Dancers are guaranteed a certain number of weeks on the show, regardless of how far they make it.

Okay, so I just found out something insane. My queen, Jennifer Lawrence, the absolute goddess, got $25 million for Don’t Look Up – which, hello, is a steal! But get this… Leonardo DiCaprio made thirty million! Thirty! I love Leo, I really do, but J.Law carried that movie! It’s just… unfair! I need a moment. Seriously, twenty-five million for Jennifer Lawrence? It should have been way more, and he got five million extra?! Ugh, the injustice of it all!

Jennifer Lawrence acknowledged that Leonardo DiCaprio earns more at the box office than she does. While she’s happy with her own earnings, she explained to Vanity Fair that it’s often awkward for women to ask for equal pay. She’s observed that when women do question a pay discrepancy, they’re often told it’s not about gender, but aren’t given a clear explanation for the difference.

Jennifer Lawrence’s optimistic outlook came after a difficult battle. When the 2014 Sony email leak showed she was paid less than her male co-stars in the 2013 film American Hustle, it sparked a widespread discussion about the wage gap between men and women in Hollywood.

In a 2017 interview with Channel 4 News, Lawrence explained she wasn’t worried about her earnings. ‘I’m lucky to have the job I do,’ she said. ‘It wasn’t about the money – being paid millions for a film isn’t something to complain about. I was upset by the fact that things weren’t fair and that there was a clear inequality.’

Compared to Leonardo DiCaprio’s earnings, Jonah Hill made a relatively small $60,000 for his work in the 2013 film The Wolf of Wall Street – before taxes and commissions. This is significantly less than the $10 million earned by the lead actor.

I remember hearing that they offered me the absolute minimum they could get away with, as I shared on The Howard Stern Show back in 2014. But honestly, it was a Martin Scorsese film! I was so eager to make the deal happen with Moneyball that I just wanted to sign everything before they had a chance to reconsider.

Hill, a two-time Best Supporting Actor nominee known for his role as a frantic stockbroker, said he’d be willing to sacrifice everything to work with director Martin Scorsese. He explained that making a living often means taking roles just to pay the bills – like doing a movie such as 22 Jump Street – but working with someone you admire is a different story. He’d gladly do it again, emphasizing that passion and artistic fulfillment are more important than financial gain. He believes you should pursue projects you genuinely care about.

The actress hinted that the original Friends cast – including Jennifer Aniston, Courtney Cox, David Schwimmer, and Matt LeBlanc – each earn around $20 million annually from the show’s continued broadcasts. She jokingly suggested to The Times in April 2026 that the reason for this high amount is simply “Because Phoebe Buffay was so great!”

But in actuality, she praised the talents of her costars for their performances.

I thought my performance was decent, but Jennifer and Courteney were incredible! David and Matt had me in stitches, and Matthew Perry? He was on another level entirely.

According to Joe Giudice, he and his ex-wife Teresa Giudice didn’t make much money during the first season of The Real Housewives of New Jersey. He said on his daughter Gia’s Casual Chaos podcast in August 2025 that they earned around $25,000, which he considered a very small amount, but they accepted it.

Creating the first season of the show wasn’t inexpensive. The father of four recalled, “I remember that big party we threw in my living room – I think the whole first season cost me around $150,000.”

Oprah Winfrey happily accepted only a little bit of green to star in 1985’s The Color Purple.

In a 2023 interview with Essence, the media billionaire recalled being offered just $35,000 for a role in the film, which he described as the best $35,000 he ever made. He explained that the experience was transformative and a valuable learning opportunity.

Jennifer Lopez made history when she played the late Tejano singer Selena Quintanilla in the 1997 movie Selena. She was the first Latina actress to be paid $1 million for a film role.

Looking back at the movie that launched her career, Lopez recalled being naive at the time. “I was so young, I didn’t really understand what was happening,” she told Variety in 2019. She added that receiving a million-dollar offer was amazing, and she believes everyone involved was trying to prove a point.

This success allowed her to earn hundreds of millions of dollars, and sometimes she doesn’t even have to invest any of her own money to do so.

Jennifer Lopez told GQ in 2019 that she pursues projects out of passion, not just for the money. She didn’t make a lot of profit from Hustlers, even producing it for free, because she believes in investing in herself. Just like her song ‘Jenny From the Block’ suggests, she follows her heart and does what she loves.

Adrien Brody wasn’t motivated by money when he made The Brutalist. He accepted the role of a struggling Hungarian architect in post-World War II America for a salary of $250,000 and went on to win his second Best Actor Oscar.

Brody told Variety he’s ready for a big studio film, explaining he’s put all his resources into renovating a large, castle-like barn in upstate New York.

When asked about his early spending habits, Pete Davidson joked to New York magazine, “Do you know how much we make?” He explained that when he started at Saturday Night Live in 2014 at age 20, he earned around $3,000 per episode, which he quipped was just enough to cover dinner.

It’s noteworthy that pay for new cast members on Saturday Night Live has stayed consistent over the years. In 1975, the original stars – John Belushi, Jane Curtin, Gilda Radner, Dan Aykroyd, and Chevy Chase – each earned $750 per episode. When adjusted for inflation, that’s about $3,300 in 2014, and roughly $4,428 in 2025.

Kenan Thompson earns considerably more than $3,000 per episode of SNL these days, especially since he’s been on the show for a remarkable 22 seasons. However, he began his career like everyone else, starting from the beginning.

In Demi Lovato’s 2024 documentary, Child Star, the former All That cast member shared that their first paycheck was $800. They joked that, being 12 at the time, it felt like a million dollars.

It turns out Gilmore Girls’ status as a beloved rewatchable classic is literally priceless.

Lauren Graham, best known for playing Lorelai Gilmore for seven seasons and then returning for the 2016 revival Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life, recently shared that she doesn’t receive any ongoing payments (residuals) from Netflix. She told Jimmy Kimmel in March 2025 that she’s instead been ‘paid in love and appreciation.’

During the 2023 SAG-AFTRA strike, actress Tommy Dorfman revealed details about her pay for the show 13 Reasons Why. The strike, along with the WGA strike, was partly caused by streaming services like Netflix not offering extra pay to actors and crew even after a show became successful.

Dorfman revealed on Threads on July 24th that she earned $29,953.24 for the first season of 13 Reasons Why before her agency, manager (a combined 20% fee), and taxes were taken out. She worked on 8 episodes over six months, doing all the promotion and appearing in key promotional artwork. She also traveled frequently between New York City and San Francisco to film, often working for days without pay and barely qualifying for health insurance.

As a huge fan, I was thrilled to hear that in just the first month, the show’s first season racked up an incredible 476 million hours of viewing! That’s why we’re all standing with the writers and actors – numbers like that prove how important this show is, and they deserve to be supported.

Dax Shepard recently shared with Lauren Graham, a former co-star from their show Parenthood, that he was one of the lowest-paid actors on the NBC drama during its six-season run. He didn’t mention specific salaries or names, but confirmed he earned significantly less than many of his colleagues.

But, the Armchair Expert host stressed that he did not mind.

I’ve always been really curious about salaries. Before becoming a parent, with every job I took, I made it a point to find out what all my colleagues were earning. I’d either ask directly, or subtly find out through my agent or other sources. It was just something I always did!

He deliberately avoided finding out details about his family’s history with the company, which allowed him to appreciate the experience, even when he suspected where he stood in terms of salary and position.

In 2005, George Clooney told the Los Angeles Times that he and Grant Heslov each only made one dollar from the film Good Night, and Good Luck. Clooney explained that to get the movie made, he had to cash his check for directing and give up his salary as an actor. Heslov, who also co-wrote and co-produced the film, did the same.

George Clooney’s passion project, a play about CBS News journalist Edward R. Murrow and his courageous reporting in the 1950s, proved to be a success. Clooney made his Broadway debut playing Murrow, and the production ran through June 2025. Even before its official opening on April 3rd, the play earned a record-breaking $3.3 million during previews (the highest gross for a non-musical), proving it was a much bigger hit than just a personal endeavor.

Christian Bale revealed in a 2022 interview with GQ that he earned very little for his role as Patrick Bateman in the 2000 film American Psycho. He explained that the production wasn’t initially eager to cast him, and he was paid only the legally required minimum wage thanks to the support of director Mary Harron.

Bale recalled earning so little during one job that the makeup artists joked he was paid less than they were, while he was sitting in the makeup trailer.

Although his uncle was Rico, Jon Heder revealed in 2010 that he originally earned just $1,000 for his role in Napoleon Dynamite.

Once the unexpectedly successful comedy took off, he was able to negotiate a share of the earnings. He told the New Zealand Herald that the offer was improved, saying, “They went a little bit higher.”

Despite a successful career with acclaimed films like Amistad and Blood Diamond, Djimon Hounsou believes he doesn’t earn enough money in Hollywood.

The Beninese actor told CNN’s Larry Madowo in January 2025 that despite working in film for over twenty years—and having received two Oscar nominations and starred in numerous blockbuster movies—he continues to struggle financially to support himself.

In her 2024 memoir, Rebel Rising, Rebel Wilson revealed that she earned $3,500 for her work on Bridesmaids, but the entire amount went to joining the Screen Actors Guild. Essentially, she didn’t receive any money for the film.

Still, she wrote, the experience was “everything!”

The Australian actress’s career soared, and her salary increased dramatically. She earned the standard union rate of $65,000 for the 2012 film Pitch Perfect, but by 2017’s Pitch Perfect 3, she was commanding $10 million. In total, she made $20 million from Pitch Perfect 3, Isn’t It Romantic, and The Hustle. However, after paying nearly 50% in taxes, 10% to her agents, and 5% to her lawyer, plus covering the costs of her publicist, business manager, and assistant, she still considered her earnings a huge success.

In late 2017, Ellen Pompeo successfully negotiated a new contract for her role on Grey’s Anatomy. She secured $575,000 per episode, a substantial signing bonus, and a share of the show’s profits estimated to be worth between $6 and $7 million.

Okay, so I was reading an interview with Pompeo – seriously, I hang on every word – and she just gets it. She said that at 48, she finally feels comfortable asking for what she’s worth, and honestly, that’s SO true, it just takes time. She knows people in Hollywood don’t always see her as ‘relevant’ because she’s played Meredith Grey for fourteen years! But she was like, anyone can be good in the first couple of seasons, but to still be killing it after fourteen years? That’s a real skill, and she’s totally right! It’s amazing, and I’m so proud of her for saying it!

Ellen Pompeo recently thought about the fact that she consistently earned less than her “Grey’s Anatomy” costar, Patrick Dempsey, despite being the show’s central character. However, she says she doesn’t resent him for it.

In a March 2025 episode of her podcast, Call Her Daddy, she explained that she felt she deserved the same recognition as someone else, simply because the show was named after her. She wasn’t upset about the other person’s success, but rather that her contributions weren’t valued as highly, and she believed that would always be the case.

Jamie Lee Curtis remembers earning $2,000 per week, totaling $8,000, for her first movie, the 1978 film Halloween. As she explained to Rotten Tomatoes in 2018, practically no one involved with the film received significant payment.

Although the lead actress made a good amount of money, director John Carpenter’s friend, Nick Castle, felt like he was doing very well earning $25 a day to share the role of Michael Myers. (Actually, Anthony Moran is the face you briefly see under the mask, and editor Tommy Lee Wallace also played Michael Myers in some scenes.)

Looking back, it was quite an experience!” Castle, a USC film school classmate of Carpenter’s, told Vanity Fair in 2018. “I was really interested in being on set to learn how movies are made and to see how a director works. I figured I’d be there for free, but I ended up getting paid $25 a day just to wear a rubber mask!”

Taraji P. Henson received an Oscar nomination for her supporting role in the 2008 film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. However, she was still frustrated years later that she only earned $150,000 for the movie, despite initially requesting $500,000.

In a 2021 interview on the Ladies First With Laura Brown podcast, producer Scott Henson discussed the high salaries of the film’s stars, Brad Pitt and Cate Blanchett. He noted that $20 million paychecks for actors were less common at the time, but he believed Pitt and Blanchett were worth it, saying, “And rightfully so—I’m not saying they shouldn’t have paid Cate and Brad what they deserved.”

She explained that she was also bringing value to the project and believed her salary request was reasonable, considering how much the film would likely earn from ticket sales. She wouldn’t have accepted anything less. Henson said she was very disappointed when they initially offered her only $100,000. Ultimately, she ended up with $150,000, but it meant humbling herself to accept it.

Henson understands some people might think $150,000 is a lot of money, but she wants to be clear she’s not ungrateful. However, after taxes and paying her team, the actual amount she receives is significantly less. She estimates that after the government takes 50%, she’s left with $75,000. Then, after paying her team 30% of the original amount, she’s potentially left with only around $40,000.

Although Cate Blanchett has earned a significant income throughout her career, her role as the elf Galadriel in the hugely successful The Lord of the Rings films – which made $2.9 billion worldwide – wasn’t her sole source of income.

When Andy Cohen suggested on Watch What Happens Live in August 2024 that The Lord of the Rings was her most lucrative role, she laughed and said, “Absolutely not!” She explained that the cast didn’t receive substantial paychecks, joking that she essentially earned free sandwiches and got to keep her prosthetic ears.

I was absolutely shocked when I heard this! Apparently, Orlando Bloom, the amazing Legolas from The Lord of the Rings, only made $175,000 for all three movies. He shared this on The Howard Stern Show in 2023, and it just doesn’t seem right considering how iconic his role was!

Hopefully he also got to keep his ears.

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2026-05-01 16:50