‘The Big Bang Theory’: Mayim Bialik And Melissa Rauch To Get Significant Pay Raise In Seasons 11 and 12

For fans who were wondering about the outcome of the big five in CBS’s The Big Bang Theory taking pay cuts in order to give other cast members a pay raise, the contracts have finally been signed. And, according to insiders, this means that Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch will get a pay raise in upcoming seasons of the sitcom.

In what will likely be the final seasons of The Big Bang Theory, Mayim Bialik (who plays Amy Farrah Fowler) and Melissa Rauch (Bernadette Rostenkowski-Wolowitz) will now be paid $500,000 per episode for Seasons 11 and 12, according to insiders with “knowledge of the negotiations,” explains Variety. The new contracts are also likely to contain a “separate development component” for each actor, although a representative for Warner Bros. Television declined to comment in regard to the finer details of the new contracts.

Previously, Bialik and Rauch were making between $175,000-$200,000 per episode, a significant decrease from their new contract for Seasons 11 and 12. As previously reported by the Inquisitr, fellow cast members agreed to a pay cut in order for Bialik and Rauch’s pay raise. Johnny Galecki (who plays Leonard Hofstadter in The Big Bang Theory), Kaley Cuoco (Penny), Jim Parsons (Sheldon Cooper), Simon Helberg (Howard Wolowitz), and Kunal Nayyar (Raj Koothrappali) all agreed to a $100,000 pay cut each to free up additional funds for Warner Bros. in order to help Rauch and Bialik get the pay raise they all felt was deserved for the two actresses.

Previously, these main five characters were earning just under $1 million per episode. According to Deadline, Galecki, Cuoco, and Parsons have been earning this much per episode in the past three seasons of The Big Bang Theory. Helberg and Nayyar are relative newcomers to this amount thanks to their previous contracts with Warner Bros.

Melissa Rauch and Mayim Bialik joined the cast of The Big Bang Theory as guest stars in Season 3, Melissa as the girlfriend of Howard Wolowitz and Mayim as the girlfriend of Sheldon Cooper. They both became regular cast members in Season 4 of The Big Bang Theory. As Variety points out, Mayim Bialik has had “four consecutive supporting comedy actress Emmy nominations for playing Amy Farrah Fowler,” indicating this pay raise is a long-awaited succession.

Contracts were originally signed at an earlier date for Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Jim Parsons, Simon Helberg, and Kunal Nayyar. However, Deadline states that delays occurred in regard to the new contracts for Melissa Rauch and Mayim Bialik due to “the growth in importance of their roles on the show.”

The Big Bang Theory is television’s highest-rated comedy, and, thanks to that, CBS have commissioned a spinoff series called Young Sheldon. This series will, obviously, delve into Sheldon’s younger years. Already, Iain Armitage has been cast as a 9-year-old Sheldon Cooper. Also joining the cast of Young Sheldon will be Lance Barber, Raegan Revord, Zoe Perry, and Montana Jordan. The Huffington Post reports that while the show will be based on Sheldon as a child, Jim Parsons will still narrate the new series.

What do you think about the new contracts for Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch moving forward into Season 11 and 12 of The Big Bang Theory? Let us know your thoughts by commenting below.

The Big Bang Theory returns to CBS with Episode 23 (titled “The Gyroscopic Collapse”) of Season 10 on Thursday, May 4, at 8/7c on CBS.

According to IMDb, the synopsis for Episode 23 of The Big Bang Theory Season 10 is below.

“After celebrating the completion of the top-secret Air Force project, Leonard, Sheldon and Wolowitz get an unwelcome surprise; Amy receives an offer for a summer position as a visiting researcher.”

[Featured Image by CBS]