Reality TV
‘Friends’ Co-Creator Marta Kauffman Says the Cast’s $1 Million Per Episode Salary was “Ridiculous”
Though it's been more than 10 years since Friends went off the air, the show's co-creator Marta Kauffman is still fielding questions about the series — especially about the cast's exorbitant salaries!
During a recent panel discussion at the Television Critics Association, the producer — whose new show, Grace and Frankie recently premiered on Netflix — confessed paying Friends stars Jennifer Aniston, 46, Courteney Cox, 51, Lisa Kudrow, 52, David Schwimmer, 48, Matthew Perry, 45, and Matt LeBlanc, 48, $1 million per episode was "ridiculous."
Marta at the TCA panel on Tuesday, July 28.
“A million dollars an episode, let’s be honest, that’s kinda ridiculous. That’s a lot of money… And there’s something unrealistic about it," Marta, 58, said during the press event on Tuesday, July 28.
When the show first premiered in September 1994, each cast member was reportedly paid around $22,500 per episode. By the show's final two seasons, however, the cast had collectively negotiated a $1 million per show salary, effectively making Jennifer, Lisa and Courteney the highest paid TV actresses of all time.
David, Courteney, Jennifer, Matthew, Matt and Lisa on Friends in 2001.
Earlier this year, Matt — who played struggling actor Joey Tribbiani on the show — similarly dished about the ensemble's earnings when asked if he thought each actor was worth their $1 million payday.
“Were we worth $1 million? To me, that’s such a strange question. How do you put a price on how funny something is? We were in a position to get it. If you’re in a position in any job, no matter what the job is — if you’re driving a milk truck or installing TVs or an upholsterer for a couch — if you’re in a position to get a raise and you don’t get it, you’re stupid. You know what I mean? We were in a position and we were able to pull it off. ‘Worth it’ has nothing to do with it," he said during an interview with [HuffPost Live](https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/01/09/matt-leblanc-friends-salaryn6443690.html).
