15 Actors Who Revealed How Little They Make In Residuals Amid Strike

But actors and writers are on strike for good reason — one of those being the inadequate residual payments that they receive from streaming services. These kinds of payments were once steady forms of income for actors, who received compensation each time a film or television episode was replayed.

With the advent of streaming, actors are now paid practically nothing each time their projects are viewed on platforms like Netflix and Hulu. Even actors who are major stars say they sometimes receive checks for just cents and payments that are nowhere near a living wage. To showcase how bad things actually are, many actors are now taking to social media to reveal some of their recent residual payments — and it really puts the strike in perspective.

Find out how much these actors have made in residuals…

1. Mandy Moore

Mandy Moore may have starred on the massively popular This Is Us for six seasons but she admits she’s made very little in residuals from the show. Although it was on the air for years and later got picked up by Hulu, she says that at times, she’s received “very tiny, like, 81-cent checks.”

“The residual issue is a huge issue…I was talking with my business manager who said he’s received a residual for a penny and two pennies,” she told The Hollywood Reporter.

2. Sean Gunn

Sean Gunn was a member of the cast of Gilmore Girls for years but says he sees almost no residuals from the massively streamed show, which found new life (and a new season) on Netflix. While on the picket lines, Sean said that he felt that he was being unfairly compensated.

“I was on a television show called Gilmore Girls for a long time that has brought in massive profits for Netflix. It has been one of their most popular shows for a very long time, over a decade. It gets streamed over and over and over again, and I see almost none of the revenue that comes into that,” Sean told The Hollywood Reporter.

3. Kimiko Glenn

Orange Is The New Black actress Kimiko Glenn has long been vocal about the menial residuals she receives from the show. Back in 2020, she posted a TikTok revealing that she had received only $27.30 in overseas royalties in a pay period. Now that the strike has begun, Kimiko has opened up once again, revealing that much of the cast had to keep second jobs even when they were on the show.

“My tits live on in perpetuity [and] I deserve to get paid for as many f–king streams as that s–t gets. Second of all, we did not get paid very well ever. And when I say ‘did not get paid very well,’ you would die. People were bartenders still [and] people had their second jobs still. They were f–king famous as s–t, like internationally famous…but had to keep their second jobs because they couldn’t afford to not!” she said in a TikTok.

Matt McGorry commented on the video saying he kept his day job “because it paid better than the mega-hit TV show we were on,” while Beth Dover claimed “it actually COST me money” to be on the show’s later seasons “since I was cast local hire and had to fly myself out.”

4. William Stanford Davis

Abbott Elementary actor William Stanford Davis has been an actor for 35 years and recently revealed that he once got a check for just five cents for reruns of a past TV show on which he had appeared.

“This is a residual check. You see that? Can you believe that? That’s [five] cents. The postage, the paper, everything costs more than that. That’s what they think of us as actors. This is why we’re on strike for better wages, for better residuals [and] for a piece of the subscription and to not give in to AI,” William shared on Instagram.

5. Heather Matarazzo

While speaking out about the strike, Princess Diaries actress Heather Matarazzo received a comment from a viewer who called her out for being an “elite” that did nothing to contribute to the “struggling” Americans who had made them rich. Heather responded by showing several residual payments, many of which were less than 10 cents each.

“Really? Do those look like elite numbers? I’m a working class actor, sir, as are a majority of actors that are in the f–king union,” she replied.

6. Stephen Glickman

Stephen Glickman, who starred on Nickelodeon’s Big Time Rush for several years, says that he has been paid nothing in residuals in the time that the show has been on streaming services.

“For those of you trying to understand the SAG strike…here is a little info for you. BIG TIME RUSH played on Netflix for two years and then got moved to Paramount +. Any guesses on how much I was paid by Netflix and Paramount + in residuals? I’ll give you a hint. It’s $0,” he wrote on Twitter.

7. Kendrick Sampson

Insecure star Kendrick Sampson often gets a number of residual checks but they don’t add up to be nearly enough to pay his bills. In the month of July, he said he got 56 checks which totaled just $86.

“Goin through a tough time like so many people in our industry and everywhere right now. Last week, I get news that I’ve received 56 residual checks. I prayed that these are HEALTHY checks to get me through this time. But lo and behold – 50 (yes FIFTY! FIVE, ZERO) checks into counting, I had to take a break because… the total was $86 This is that bulls–t. And I KNOW people are struggling much more than me!” Kendrick wrote on Instagram.

8. Constance Marie

Constance Marie starred on Switched at Birth for five years but in the years that have followed, she has received little in terms of residual checks. In a video calling for studios to pay fair wages to all actors, Constance showed some of the payments she recently received.

“Here’s a perfect example of how it’s not working right now and why we have to go on strike,” she said on TikTok. “So the studio is still showing my show, my work, my likeness. And this is what I get paid for it. Three cents. Four cents. 74 cents. I can’t make a living and pay my rent and pay my insurance off residuals.”

9. Jana Schmieding

Reservation Dogs actress Jana Schmieding recently took to Twitter to give fans an inside look at the residuals she’s received. In a SAG-AFTRA screenshot, Jana showed that she was paid just three cents during a recent pay period.

“To fans of my character Bev on Reservation Dogs, here’s a peek behind the IHS counter at what part of my residuals looks like for acting on a show that I love. I pull in $.03 each quarter for UNLIMITED worldwide streams on fx/hulu/DISNEY. & Iger is yachting,” she wrote.

10. Robert Carradine

Robert Carradine, who played Hilary Duff’s on screen father on Lizzie McGuire, says that he once got a check that was for no money at all. He shared a photo of the 2019 check which was made out for zero dollars and zero cents.

“Why we’re striking…,” Robert wrote on Instagram.

11. Brandee Evans

P-Valley actress Brandee Evans may be on one of the most popular shows in Starz history, but she’s getting paid almost nothing in residual checks. In a TikTok, she showed three checks she had recently received — one for $3.99, another for $4.67 and one that was for only one cent.

“That’s why we gonna strike,” Brandee said in the video.

12. Biff Wiff

Biff Wiff is a longtime actor who most recently appeared on Jury Duty. But despite having a lifetime of acting gigs under his belt, Biff is still getting paid just pennies in residuals. On Twitter, he shared a photo of some recent payouts, which were all just one cent.

“I’m just another lazy actor, laying on my back getting rich off residuals!” he sarcastically wrote along with the photo.

13. Luke Cook

Luke Cook has been on numerous shows including The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and Katy Keene but says he is nowhere near as rich as people assume. When one of his TikTok viewers commented that the strike was just “millionaires striking” to become even richer, Luke fought back. While talking about his role on Dollface, he says he was paid $7,500 per episode — which ended up being a lot less between payouts to his team and taxes. He noted that when he was put on billboards for the show, he also received “zero” dollars for his likeness.

“95% of the actors in SAG cannot make a living from acting. They’ve got to have side hustles. I am one of those actors,” he said. “A huge portion of this strike is about people like me who need to be paid more for the work that they do and let them have a portion of the profits that these streamers and these big companies are bringing in.”

14. Rachel Leyco

Rachel Leyco has appeared on numerous shows, including Bel-Air and Atypical, but gets almost nothing in residual payments. On Twitter, she shared several checks she had recently gotten, all which only totaled $18.89.

“I’ve been on multiple shows across multiple streaming platforms (Netflix, Peacock, & more) & these are some of my last few residuals,” she wrote before sarcastically adding, “Yeah, this pay is totally reasonable…”

15. Kamil McFadden

Kamil McFadden starred on Disney Channel’s K.C. Undercover alongside Zendaya but makes almost nothing in residuals. In a video, he scrolled through some of his recent payments — which actually included negative amounts.

“Wanna see something crazy? Y’all ever seen negative amounts on your residuals? The full video is almost two minutes long and I’m only netting $2.77. The math ain’t mathing,” Kamil wrote.