What is Kaley Cuoco's net worth and salary?
Kaley Cuoco is an American actress and singer who has a net worth of $110 million. Kaley Cuoco first became a household name, playing the role of Bridget Hennessy on the sitcom "8 Simple Rules" (2002-2005). However, it was her role as Penny on the hugely successful sitcom "The Big Bang Theory" (2007-2019) that propelled her to international fame. Her performance in the show earned her several awards and nominations, solidifying her place in the industry. The show also made her one of the highest-paid stars in television history. From base salary alone, as in not including syndication royalties, Kaley earned $150 million from "The Big Bang Theory." Much more detail on her salary later in this article.
Post-"Big Bang Theory," Cuoco showcased her versatility by voicing the character of Harley Quinn in the animated series of the same name and starring in the critically acclaimed dramatic series "The Flight Attendant," which she also executive produced. Her role in "The Flight Attendant" garnered Cuoco a Golden Globe nomination, proving her abilities beyond comedy. Cuoco has also appeared in a number of films, including "Hop" and "The Wedding Ringer."
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Early Life
Kaley Cuoco was born on November 30, 1985, in Camarillo, California, to parents Gary and Layne Cuoco. She grew up in a family that supported her passion for acting from a young age. Cuoco was homeschooled and began her professional acting career at the age of six, appearing in commercials and modeling for various print advertisements. She also participated in amateur tennis tournaments, showcasing her athletic abilities. Cuoco's early acting roles included appearances in the films "Virtuosity" (1995) and "Picture Perfect" (1997), as well as guest spots on popular television shows such as "Ellen" and "Northern Exposure."
Career
Kaley Cuoco, a talented American actress, began her acting career at a young age. In her early years, she appeared in several television commercials and had minor roles in films such as "Picture Perfect" (1997) and "Growing Up Brady" (2000). Her breakthrough role came in 2002 when she was cast as Bridget Hennessy in the popular sitcom "8 Simple Rules." The show ran for three seasons, and Cuoco's performance earned her significant recognition in the industry.
As she transitioned into her mid-career, Cuoco continued to make appearances in various television shows and movies. She had a recurring role in the supernatural drama series "Charmed" (2005-2006) and appeared in films like "The Hollow" (2004) and "Lucky 13" (2005). However, her most notable role during this period was as Brandy Harrington in the animated series "Brandy & Mr. Whiskers" (2004-2006), which showcased her voice acting skills.
Cuoco's major success came when she landed the role of Penny in the critically acclaimed and immensely popular sitcom "The Big Bang Theory" (2007-2019). Her portrayal of the bubbly, aspiring actress who lives across the hall from two socially awkward physicists became an integral part of the show's success. "The Big Bang Theory" ran for 12 seasons, and Cuoco's performance earned her numerous accolades, including a Satellite Award, a Critics' Choice Television Award, and two People's Choice Awards. The show also catapulted her to international stardom and made her one of the highest-paid television actresses.
In addition to her work on "The Big Bang Theory," Cuoco continued to take on other projects. She starred in the indie comedy film "The Wedding Ringer" (2015) alongside Kevin Hart and Josh Gad, and lent her voice to the animated film "Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Road Chip" (2015). Following the conclusion of "The Big Bang Theory," Cuoco took on a leading role and served as an executive producer for the HBO Max series "The Flight Attendant" (2020-present). Her performance in the mystery thriller has garnered critical acclaim and earned her nominations for a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Critics' Choice Television Award.
Kaley Cuoco Big Bang Theory Salary History
For the first season of Big Bang, Kaley earned $45,000 per episode. That works out to $765,000 for the season. For seasons two through 4 her salary was boosted to $200,000 per episode. That's $14 million in earnings for that 70 episode chunk. For seasons five through seven she earned $350,000 per episode. That's another $25.2 million in earnings. For season 8, 9 and 10 she earned $850 thousand per episode, which translates to $61 million for the three seasons. For the final two seasons, 11 and 12, Kaley and her main cast co-stars each earned $1 million per episode. That's $48 million for the two seasons.
Total it all up and from original salary alone, Kaley earned $148.965 million. But that's not all!
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Royalties and Residuals
During the later seasons of the show when the cast was at the height of their power, the three main cast members (Kaley, Johnny Galecki and Jim Parsons) negotiated a deal where they each would own 1% of the show's backend equity. In the first year of syndication sales, the show generated $1 billion. That meant each of the three earned and extra $10 million in the first year. The syndication sales slowly dwindle but they should each earn around $10 million per year for the next decade.
Furthermore, as a Screen Actors Guild show, the Big Bang Theory actors are entitled to 80% of their original paychecks in the show's first year of reruns. Essentially an 80% double dip. They were arguable the last show to receive such a lucrative deal after SAG and AFRTRA merged and adopted AFTRA's residual standard which pays actors a guest starring rate when shows re-air. To understand the difference, under SAG someone like Kaley likely earned $800,000 per episode the first time the show aired in reruns. So She earned $24 million originally and then received residuals worth $19 million down the road.
Personal Life
While starring on "The Big Bang Theory" Kaley and her co-star Johnny Galecki dated for approximately two years.
She was engaged to addiction specialist Josh Resnik for about a year before calling it off in March 2012.
In December 2013 Kaley married professional tennis player Ryan Sweeting, just three months after they met. She filed for divorce two years later.
In late 2016 Kaley began dating equestrian Karl Cook. Karl is the son of multi-billionaire Scott Cook who founded the tax software company Intuit. As of this writing, Scott Cook has a net worth of $3.6 billion. Kaley and Karl married in 2018. They actually continued living separately until 2020 when construction was complete on their 11,000 square-foot Hidden Hills mansion. This also happened to be the height of the COVID-19 lock-down period. One year later, the couple announced they were breaking up.
During her time off camera, Kaley enjoys horseback riding, playing the drums, kick boxing and bowling. But her favorite pastime is playing tennis. She's been playing tennis since she was a very little girl. Kaley Cuoco was named #77 on the list of FHM-Us' 100 Sexiest Women in 2005 and 21 in 2008.
(Photo by Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic)
Real Estate
In 2019 Kaley and Karl paid $12 million for a still-under-construction mansion in Hidden Hills, California. The 11,000 square-foot home sits on 1.5 acres of property and also features large lawns, a guest house and spa-like pool area. Kaley and Karl sold this house in an off-market deal for $16 million in April 2022.
Not terribly far from this property Kaley owns a 40-acre horse ranch in Ventura County.
In April 2022 Kaley paid $5.25 million for a sprawling property in Agoura Hills, California. The seller was Twilight actor Taylor Lautner. Kaley listed this home for sale in June 2023 for $7 million. She sold it for $5.5 million in April 2024. Here is a video tour:
