What is Jim Parsons' net worth and salary?
Jim Parsons is an American actor and producer who has a net worth of $160 million. Jim Parsons has earned his net worth primarily from his role as Sheldon Cooper on the CBS sitcom "The Big Bang Theory" (2007–2019), which earned him numerous awards, including four Primetime Emmys. The series also made Jim the highest-paid actor on television for many years, and since 2017, he has narrated and executive produced a prequel series about his character, "Young Sheldon."
Jim Parsons has more than 40 acting credits to his name, including the films "Garden State" (2004), "The Big Year" (2011), "Hidden Figures" (2016), "Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile" (2019), and "The Boys in the Band" (2020), the television series "Judging Amy" (2004–2005), and the Broadway plays "The Normal Heart" (2011), "Harvey" (2012), "An Act of God" (2015), and "The Boys in the Band" (2018).
Jim has lent his voice to the film "Home" (2015), the television series "Family Guy" (2009; 2012), "Glenn Martin, DDS" (2010), "The Super Hero Squad Show" (2011), "Pound Puppies" (2011), "The High Fructose Adventures of Annoying Orange" (2012), "Kick Buttowski: Suburban Daredevil" (2012), "SuperMansion" (2016), and "The Simpsons" (2020), and the TV specials "Elf: Buddy's Musical Christmas" (2014) and "Michael Jackson's Halloween" (2017). Parsons hosted "Saturday Night Live" in 2014, and he has served as a producer on the TV movies "Bless Her Heart" (2016), "The Family Gene" (2017), and "So Much" (2021), the Netflix miniseries "Hollywood" (2020), the film "A Kid Like Jake" (2018), the HBO Max documentary "Equal" (2020), and the television series "Special" (2019–2021) and "Call Me Kat" (2021–present).
Early Life
Jim Parsons was born James Joseph Parsons on March 24, 1973, in Houston, Texas. He is the son of Judy Ann and Milton Parsons, Jr., and he has a sister named Julie. Sadly, Parsons' father died in a car accident in 2001. When Jim was just 6 years old, he played the role of the Kola-Kola bird in a school production of "The Elephant Child," and after that he was determined to pursue an acting career. While Parsons was growing up, he was influenced by TV sitcoms, such as "Family Ties" and "Three's Company." During his junior year at Klein Oak High School, Jim appeared in a school production of the Michael Frayn play "Noises Off," and he said of the experience, "I fully connected with the role I was playing and started to truly understand what it meant to be honest on stage." After high school, Parsons enrolled at the University of Houston, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in Theater. As a college student, he appeared in nearly 20 plays in three years. Jim co-founded the Houston theater company Infernal Bridegroom Productions, and he regularly performed in productions at the Stages Repertory Theater. In 1999, he was one of just seven students accepted into a two-year classical theater course that was a partnership between the University of San Diego and the Old Globe Theatre. In 2001, Parsons earned a Master of Fine Arts in Acting from Old Globe Theatre/University of San Diego, then he relocated to New York.
Career
In the early 2000s, Jim appeared in Off-Broadway plays, a 2003 Quiznos commercial, and the film "Happy End" (2003), and he guest-starred in a 2002 episode of "Ed." He had a recurring role as Rob Holbrook on the CBS series "Judging Amy" from 2004 to 2005, and he appeared in the films "Garden State" (2004), "Heights" (2005), "The Great New Wonderful" (2005), "10 Items or Less" (2006), "School for Scoundrels" (2006), "On the Road with Judas" (2007), and "Gardener of Eden" (2007).
The Big Bang Theory
In 2007, Parsons landed the role that would make him a household name: Sheldon Cooper on the CBS sitcom "The Big Bang Theory."
"The Big Bang Theory" creator Chuck Lorre was so impressed with Parsons' audition that he insisted on a second reading to see if Parsons could replicate the performance. He was cast in the role, of a genius physicist with nonexistent social skills who interacts with his other nerdy friends and the attractive waitress who lives across the hall. Parsons believes the time he spent at the University of San Diego gave him the tools to break down Sheldon's lines.
The series aired 279 episodes over 12 seasons and earned Jim more than 20 awards and 60 nominations.
Other Work
While starring on "The Big Bang Theory," Parsons also guest-starred on "iCarly" (2011), appeared in the films "Sunset Stories" (2012), "Wish I Was Here" (2014), "Visions" (2015), and "A Kid Like Jake" (2018), and starred in four Broadway plays. Two of those plays were adapted into movies, with "The Normal Heart" airing on HBO in 2014 and "The Boys in the Band" premiering on Netflix in 2020. "The Normal Heart" was directed by Ryan Murphy, and he produced "The Boys in the Band." Jim also worked with Murphy in the 2020 Netflix miniseries "Hollywood," which earned him nominations from the Primetime Emmys and the Golden Globes. In 2011, Parsons co-starred with Steve Martin, Jack Black, and Owen Wilson in "The Big Year," and he performed the song "Man or Muppet" (alongside Jason Segel, Peter Linz, and Bill Barretta) as the human version of Walter in "The Muppets." "Man or Muppet," which was written by Bret McKenzie of Flight of the Conchords, went on to win an Academy Award for Best Original Song.
In 2016, Jim appeared in the critically-acclaimed film "Hidden Figures," which grossed $236.2 million against a $25 million budget and earned an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture, and in 2019, he portrayed prosecutor Larry Simpson in the Ted Bundy crime drama "Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile." Parsons also played the role of Michael Ausiello in 2022's "Spoiler Alert."
Personal Life
In May 2012, a "New York Times" article described Jim as "gay and in a 10-year relationship." Parsons married art director Todd Spiewak on May 13, 2017, at New York City's Rainbow Room. In 2013, Jim spoke about their relationship while he and Todd accepted the Inspiration Award from the LGBTQ organization GLESN, stating, "I've never considered myself an activist. I've never considered my relationship with Todd to be an act of activism. Rather simply, it's an act of love, coffee in the morning, going to work, washing the clothes, taking the dogs [out]—a regular life, boring love."
Awards and Nominations
Parsons has received nine Primetime Emmy nominations, winning Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series for "The Big Bang Theory" in 2010, 2011, 2013, and 2014. His other nominations were for Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Miniseries or a Movie for "The Normal Heart" (2014), Outstanding Short Form Comedy or Drama Series for "Special" (2019), and Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Movie for "Hollywood" (2020). "The Big Bang Theory" also earned Jim two Critics Choice Television Awards, three Gold Derby Awards, a Golden Globe, a Kids' Choice Award, four Online Film & Television Association Awards, two People's Choice Awards, a Teen Choice Award, a Television Critics Association Award, and a "TV Guide" Award. The series won a Merit – Honorary Award at the 2020 CinEuphoria Awards, and in 2015, "The Normal Heart" received the CinEuphoria award for Best Ensemble – International Competition.
The "Hidden Figures" cast earned Best Ensemble awards from the Las Vegas Film Critics Society Awards, National Board of Review, Palm Springs International Film Festival, and Screen Actors Guild Awards, and in 2020, Parsons won a Gold Derby Award for Movie/Limited Series Supporting Actor and a Pena de Prata for Best Supporting Actor in a Limited Series or Anthology Series or TV Special for "Hollywood." Jim received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2015, and in 2018, the GLAAD Media Awards honored him with the Stephen F. Kolzak Award. For his stage work, Parsons won a Theatre World Award for "The Normal Heart" in 2011.
(Photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images )
Jim Parsons Salary
For the first season of "The Big Bang Theory," Jim earned $60,000 per episode. That works out to a little more than $1 million for the season. For seasons two through four, his salary was boosted to $250,000 per episode. That's $17.5 million in earnings for that 70-episode chunk. For seasons five through seven, Parsons earned $350,000 per episode. That's another $25.2 million in earnings. For seasons eight through ten, he earned $1.2 million per episode, which translates to $86 million for the three seasons. For the final two seasons, 11 and 12, Jim accepted a slightly lower salary of $1 million per episode. That's $48 million for the two seasons. Total it all up and from original salary alone, Parsons earned $177.7 million from "The Big Bang Theory."
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 (Parsons, Kaley Cuoco, and Johnny Galecki) 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 an 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.
Real Estate
In April 2019, Jim sold his longtime home in the Los Feliz neighborhood of Los Angeles for $6.95 million. He bought the house from "Twilight" actor Robert Pattinson for $6.325 million in 2014. The house was also previously owned by Laker Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.
Parsons currently lives in the Gramercy Park neighborhood of New York City. He purchased a condo in 2011 for $1.82 million and a second, adjacent condo the following year for $2.82 million.
