When The Big Bang Theory was still airing on CBS, the cast continued to land higher salaries over time. We know this because negotiations about what they were making were pretty public news at the time, particularly later on in the series when they all negotiated for the same $1 million per episode. With 20+ episodes a season being made, that added up to a hefty amount of cash. So, it’s no huge surprised that people are curious about the money Kaley Cuoco is now making years later.
Recently, the comedy and drama actress was asked what it’s like to go from making “an insane amount of money” on The Big Bang Theory to a “good amount” of cash for her more recent TV roles. Honestly, I think only another celebrity could get away with this question, so I’m really glad Dax Shepard asked it on his Armchair Expert podcast. Cuoco’s answer was both more candid and surprising than I expected, however, as she says she’s stayed down-to-earth as things have changed.
I don’t think about that [salary stuff]. I should think about that more but I don’t. I live the same as I did 20 years ago. Now it’s different, too, with a child. There’s different elements now. But I like the way I live. I don’t want to change that way that I live. … I don’t remember that I’m anyone, so I do things that are oblivious.
That's a bit surprising, honestly, given she is still super famous, but not making the same amount of money as in her heyday. In 2018, she was the second-highest paid actress on television, allegedly bringing in $24.5 million. That's not just eye-popping money, it ties in with her incredible amount of fame.
However, Cuoco went on to tell a story about how her husband Tommy Pelphrey is always having to look out for her and remind her she’s a distraction in public, even if she's making less per project these days. She says she’s gotten so used to people filming her, she forgets that there’s attention on her and it can get unsafe.
I do things. He will be like, ‘What are you doing?’ We take Matilda a lot to Chuckie Cheese, and Tom’s always like, ‘You don’t have to come tonight.’ I’m like, ‘No, No, of course I want to come. Do you not want me to come?’ He’s like, ‘No, every time you come, do you understand what happens at Chuckie Cheese?’ And I laugh and I go, ‘I swear to God, and I really mean this, I don’t even think about it.’ I just remember having so much fun with Matilda.
After The Big Bang Theory, it sounds like the actress has just been trying to get out there and live more of a regular life. Of course, her career isn't DOA. She starred in the successful and well-reviewed The Flight Attendant series shortly after TBBT ended, and she's had nice runs with the rom-com Meet Cute and the series Based on a True Story, which you can watch with a Peacock subscription. (And which Cuoco famously worked her real-life pregnancy into.)
I’m not a Hollywood girl, but I’m very in it. It’s also been my life for so long, I’m so used to what this life brings. He’s the actor’s actor. He wants to do the acting thing without all the other stuff. He doesn’t want it. ..Because I’m so used to all the stuff that comes with this nothing fazes me.
So, it sounds like earning millions on The Big Bang Theory didn’t really change her habits much. She’s still out there doing normal people things and going to Chuckie Cheese with Matilda – whether or not her husband is enthusiastic about it. She says it’s a difference between how they’ve both cultivated their careers and their expectations of the fans, which Kaley Cuoco admits can get “weird.” But she remains the same person, even when her salary zigs and zags in Hollywood.
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