Three "The Big Bang Theory" cast members have officially finalized their newest deals for the series' upcoming eighth season and will reportedly be receiving $1 million each per episode.
Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco and Johnny Galecki have all signed new three-year contracts with the network, which means they will be considered as series regulars from season 8 to season 10, according to Deadline.
The co-stars' recent contract also confirmed that they will each receive $1 million per half-hour episode for what could be a 72-episode run for the next three seasons, US Weekly reported.
This latest salary upgrade has increased Parsons, Cuoco and Galecki's per-episode earning from just $325,000 last season.
If such reports were true, this would mean that the three "The Big Bang Theory" stars are already earning as much as that of "Friends" cast members, Courteney Cox, Jennifer Aniston, Lisa Kudrow, Matt LeBlanc, David Schwimmer and Matthew Perry, for the series' final two seasons in 2003 and 2004, according to Vulture.
Prior to the stars' recent contracts, production for the show's eighth season was previously delayed. Other stars included in the series, particularly Melissa Rauch and Mayim Bialik have already settled their contracts ahead of season 8, the same publication noted.
Kunal Nayyar and Simon Helberg are still currently in negotiations with the network. Both actors are seeking an increase from their $100,000 per episode salary.
Meanwhile, a representative for WBTV refused to comment regarding the recent deals. In a statement exclusively released to the Wall Street-Journal, a representative for WBTV said, "We are not commenting or confirming the speculation that has come about due to the Deadline story today. We will keep you posted when we plan to comment."
WSJ's Amol Sharma wrote, "The Big Bang Theory and The Good Wife have helped CBS network continue its reign as the No. 1 broadcaster in terms of total viewers for the 11th time in 12 years. The sitcom is the most watched comedy on television averaging 19.79 million viewers last season."
