Profit From Reruns: Nothing
The most famous thing from “The Wonder Years” might be the theme song, “With a Little Help from My Friends” by John Lennon and Paul McCartney. The show starred Fred Savage as Kevin, a sweet teen living in the sixties. The show ran for six seasons, but it didn’t end well.
The producers wanted more adult storylines as Kevin grew up, but execs wanted things to stay teen-focused. This led to the show being canceled. Worse for Fred Savage, the drama finished its run on ABC, which owns all the rights for the show. This means Savage and the other actors have received nothing from residuals.
Sarah Michelle Gellar: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Profit From Reruns: $10 Million So Far
For seven seasons, Gellar pretended to be high schooler Buffy Summers, the chosen one, who spent her time battling demons, vampires, and plenty of other nasty creatures. While the movie that kick-started the show starred Kristy Swanson, she wasn't picked up for the television series.
The show ended in May of 2003, and thanks to the show's popularity Gellar has received over a million dollars in total residuals. UPN reruns of the show still appear every once in a while, and for fans of Joss Whedon, who would go on to make "Firefly", the DVDs of the show are a must-watch on a regular basis.
Kelsey Grammer: Frasier
Profit From Reruns: $13 Million a Year
The hysterically-serious Frasier Crane was moved from his original setting in Boston (and the show "Cheers") to Seattle to spend time with his family. It was a risky move, but it made the show even more popular than "Cheers."
Grammer played the role for more than twenty years, and after eleven seasons the show finally went off-air in 2004. By the end of the show, Grammer was making $1.6 million *per episode*. And almost twenty years off the air, the show is still busting guts and bringing in the cash for Grammer to the tune of about thirteen million dollars a year.
Johnny Galecki: The Big Bang Theory
Profit From Reruns: $10 Million a Year
Twelves years of playing Leonard, the most down-to-earth nerd from "The Big Bang Theory" will no doubt end up being profitable for Johnny Galecki. The network made billions, while Galecki and his co-stars have all made mere millions.
Just like Jim Parsons, Galecki makes up to ten million dollars a year, since reruns always seem to be playing. If you're a fan of "The Big Bang Theory" and you're disappointed it ended too soon, take heart – "Young Sheldon" has plenty of years ahead of it.
Ricky Gervais: The Office UK
Profit From Reruns: $1 Million a Year
You're undoubtedly familiar with the US version of this show, but this one came first. It only ran for two seasons (fourteen episodes) but gave us the now-famous mockumentary style used in other shows like "Parks & Rec."
Ricky Gervais plays David Brent, the boss of the office, and earns a million dollars per year even after such a small run. The US version of the show ran for much longer, a total of nine seasons, and Ricky Gervais made a number of guest appearances on it, much to the delight of fans of the original.