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‘Big Bang Theory’ cast take pay cuts to help co-stars – Metro US

‘Big Bang Theory’ cast take pay cuts to help co-stars

The Big Bang Theory
The Big Bang Theory

Here’s your feel-good Hollywood news of the day: The cast of “The Big Bang Theory” is exercising some good old-fashioned teamwork so their hit CBS show can lock down a two-season renewal.

The geek-com is currently in its 10th season; securing an 11th and 12th depends on actresses Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch negotiating a new contract that would increase their earnings — and the original cast members have offered to take pay cuts to make that happen, Variety reports.

As Rauch and Bialik only joined in the third season, they’re playing catch-up salary wise, earning a reported $200,000 an episode compared to the show’s original fivesome — Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, Johnny Galecki, Kunal Nayyar and Simon Helberg — who rake in closer to $1 million each.

The gang have proposed losing a cool $100,000 each per ep. so Bialik and Rauch can split the $500,000, bringing their earnings up to around $450,000 each per ep. The two actresses begin negotiations this week, and the question is whether they’ll settle for that meager increase, or demand parity with their fellow co-stars.

This all feels very after-school bake sale for the neighborhood fledgling little league team … except it’s billionaire TV stars bravely pooling together what, for them, amounts to chump change. It also doesn’t seem appropriate that this should fall on their shoulders; why can’t CBS pony up the funds for their no. 1 primetime comedy?

And the real question is: Why is everyone hooked on this damn corny show anyway?