Forbes has released its annual list of the highest paid television actors of the year. It what should be a surprise to no one at this point, it is just lousy with CBS employees. Specifically, your parents’ favorite network is responsible for 9 of the 15 entries, and all of the top four. And one of the other six is Charlie Sheen, who was replaced on Two and a Half Men by this year’s number one, Ashton Kutcher. Don’t believe me? Here, look:
- Ashton Kutcher – $26 million
- Jon Cryer – $19 million
- Mark Harmon – $19 million
- Neil Patrick Harris – $18 million
- Patrick Dempsey – $16 million
- Kevin Spacey – $16 million
- Tim Allen – $15 million
- Simon Baker – $13 million
- Jim Parsons – $12 million
- Jason Segel – $11 million
- Johnny Galecki – $11 million
- Jon Hamm – $10 million
- Charlie Sheen – $10 million
- Josh Radnor – $10 million
- Bryan Cranston – $8 million
Three important notes about this list:
1) It is going to look a hell of a lot different next year. With How I Met Your Mother and Breaking Bad both ending, four of the slots are opening up. Also, Parsons and Galecki both got those big raises to $1 million per episode, which puts them up in Kutcher territory. There is a very real chance that all of the top five next year will be from CBS.
2) It is stupid. The dollar figures include not only TV money, but also, like, any money that the actor was paid from anywhere, which is how Tim Allen and his huge Vegas stand-up deal cracked the top ten. Conceivably, this means that if I find $40 million on the sidewalk and give half of it to Jon Hamm to come to my birthday party, he will immediately become “the highest-paid television actor of 2015.” (It’s my money and I’ll do with it as I please.)
3) Consider this your periodic reminder that the relationship between CBS and the rest of television continues to be best expressed by this GIF:
