A favorite of fans and critics alike, Claire Foy garnered a host of awards for her role as Queen Elizabeth II in Netflix’s The Crown.
But it’s clear that in Hollywood’s eyes, it’s Robert De Niro who is the real royalty.
A new list of salary estimates compiled by industry bible Variety reveals the veteran star is likely taking home a whopping $775,000 an episode for his as yet unnamed Amazon drama – nearly 20 times more than Foy’s relatively modest $40,000.
Laughing all the way to the bank: Robert De Niro banks $775k an EPISODE for new Amazon drama as he’s named US TV’s highest paid actor
More modest: despite her role as royalty, Claire Foy took home a relatively modest $40k an episode for the first season on Netflix’s The Crown
Of course De Niro is an undisputed icon of the big screen, with decades of experience to call upon, while Foy is a relative newcomer.
Foy’s current pay packet instead matches the $40,000 an episode made by Chrissy Metz and Justin Hartley for their work on the first season of NBC’s ensemble drama This Is Us.
Like her, the show proved their big break into the mainstream, and thanks to the warm reception of their shows, their earning potential has surely vastly increased for future seasons.
Big break: Chrissy Metz and Justin Hartley made $40,000 an episode for their work on the first season of NBC’s ensemble drama This Is Us
The list also reveals that the lead stars on the hit HBO show Game Of Thrones are paid $500,000 an episode. This sum is paid to both sexes, a fact that is notable due to the high-profile efforts by many big name female stars to end the frequent pay disparity in the industry.
For Shameless star Emmy Rossum, the list shows she now earns the same – $350,000 – as the show’s big name male star William H. Macy.
She negotiated equal pay for the show’s eighth season back in December, reports Variety, for the first time earning the same as Macy.
As it should be: Kit Harington and Emilia Clarke are both paid the same amount – $500,000 an episode – for their roles on HBO’s Game Of Thrones
The same goes for the stars of Will And Grace, which returns to TV this year.
Eric McCormack, Debra Messing and Megan Mullally will each be paid $250,000 for reprising their much-loved roles.
As Variety notes, one reason TV stars have seen large pay increases is the rise of streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon. The nature of these services means talent can no longer rely on future payments for things such as syndication, so are paid more up front.
Other notable high earners from the list are Ellen DeGeneres, who is paid $50million a season for her self-titled chatshow, and Jusy Sheindlin, who makes $47million for her Judge Judy show.