Jim Parsons is now the world’s highest-paid TV actor
Jim Parsons of The Big Bang Theory has become the highest-paid actor in TV, according to a new report.
The openly gay star, who plays Sheldon on the long-running comedy series, has become one of the most powerful actors in Hollywood.
As the show returns for a ninth series next month, Forbes reports that his pay is now so high that he earns more than any other actor in television.
His reported $29 million earnings surged after the cast signed a new deal to continue making the show – surpassing last year’s list-topper Ashton Kutcher.
Kutcher starred as Walden Schmidt on the CBS sitcom Two and a Half Men, before it concluded with a controversial plot that saw him enter a ‘sham’ same-sex marriage.
Modern Family star Jesse Tyler Ferguson also made the list, earning $11 million.
Parsons came out in 2012, when he was described as gay by The New York Times ahead of appearing in HBO’s AIDS drama The Normal Heart.
He explained earlier this year: “I never had a coming out piece, I just didn’t mention it.
“I took Todd with me to events… and then finally one day while working on Harvey I did a piece with Patrick Healy for The New York Times and he just point-blank asked, ‘Was working on The Normal Heart meaningful to you as a gay man?’
“And I was like, ‘Well, yeah. Yeah.’ And what a wonderful… I can’t tell you what a wonderful thing that was, what a gift he gave me with one question.
“It was suddenly out there and official.”
The Forbes list in full:
1. Jim Parsons: $29 million
2. Johnny Galecki: $27 million
3. Mark Harmon: $20 million
3. Simon Helberg: $20 million
3. Kunal Nayyar: $20 million
3. Ashton Kutcher: $20 million
7. Jon Cryer: $15 million
7. Ray Romano: $15 million
9. Patrick Dempsey: $12 million
9. Simon Baker: $12 million
11. Ty Burrell: $11.5 million
12. Jesse Tyler Ferguson: $11 million
13. Ed O’Neill: $10.5 million
13. Eric Stonestreet: $10.5 million
15. Kevin Spacey: $9.5 million
