'The Big Bang Theory' Season 11 Renewal: Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch Reach Deals, Receive Pay Raises
Amy and Bernadette are not going anywhere after all. Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch have officially inked their respective deals to appear in "The Big Bang Theory" seasons 11 and 12.
The deal is finalized a couple of months after their co-stars Jim Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, Johnny Galecki, Kunal Nayyar and Simon Helberg signed two-year contracts.
Many "The Big Bang Theory" fans were worried that the core group will not be complete when the show begins season 11 due to the issues concerning Bialik and Rauch's compensation.
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The negotiations between "The Big Bang Theory" stars and CBS took longer as things have to be ironed out with regard to a proposed increase in the salary they will get per episode moving forward.
Bialik and Rauch started in the series via guest spots in the third season and were promoted to regulars the following season. They have been integral to "The Big Bang Theory" ever since as the importance of their characters continued to grow.
However, the increasing significance of Amy and Bernadette on the show did not reflect their compensation, which remained in the $175,000 to $200,000 range.
This is far too low compared to the earnings of the original "The Big Bang Theory" cast. Parsons, Cuoco and Galecki received $1 million per episode in the past three seasons.
Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar have also started to get the same amount as they approached the end of their current "The Big Bang Theory" deals.
According to Deadline, Bialik and Rauch will be paid $425,000 to $500,000 per installment in "The Big Bang Theory" season s11 and 12. Their co-stars reportedly agreed to take a $100,000 pay cut each to make this increase possible.
"The Big Bang Theory" season 11 has no release date yet. The current season still has a couple of episodes left, set to air on May 4 and May 11, respectively.
