The topic of residuals has been a hot topic, but where do the payments come from — and how much do actors actually make?
“Producers and distributors [bankroll the residual payments],” a spokesperson for SAG-AFTRA shared in the latest issue of Us Weekly. “Our signatory producers are responsible for residuals when their pictures are distributed and exhibited, but distributors also assume that responsibility and pay residuals as a result of getting the rights to distribute a picture.”
When it comes to the amount, there are “multiple factors” that determine how much a performer will receive.
“The Agreement that the picture is produced under [plays a role]. [Also] the type[s] of exhibition/distribution the picture is having, e.g. network runs on television, sales of DVDs or digital downloads, subscription and free streaming, basic cable, foreign television, etc.,” the spokesperson explained. “The revenue from the types of distribution, e.g. how many units were sold on DVD or digital sell thru, the value of a license to television or new media such as Pay TV or network or basic cable or a streaming service. Also how individual performers were hired, worked and paid.”
Residuals were a major topic of conversation during the dual WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes in 2023. Many actors shared their pay stubs to show why they were advocating for better pay for union members.
William Stanford Davis, who plays Mr. Johnson on Abbott Elementary, previously took to social media to show his $0.05 paycheck from an undisclosed TV show. Meanwhile, Mandy Moore revealed she received checks for pennies following reruns of her Emmy-nominated drama, This Is Us.
“Ours is a fickle industry and in my 20+ years of being a performer, my career has ebbed and flowed. I’ve had very lean years where I couldn’t get a job and those are precisely the moments when in years past, actors could rely on residuals from their past work to help them get by,” Moore, 40, wrote via her Instagram in July 2023. “The world and business have changed and I’m hoping we can find a meaningful solution moving forward.”
She added: “The trickle-down effect felt across so many industries is already devastating. I am one person — a tiny part of our guild — and while I am happy to use whatever platform my past jobs have given me to speak to issues affecting my fellow @sagaftra family, I know my experience is my own. Here’s hoping we get a fair contract soon so we can get back to doing the jobs we all love and miss so much.”
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The WGA went on strike in May 2023 before reaching a deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers five months later. SAG-AFTRA joined them on the picket line two months later after failing to reach an agreement on contract terms with the AMPTP, which represents networks, studios and streamers like Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Disney, Discovery-Warner, NBC Universal, Paramount and Sony. A deal was reached in November 2023, and the labor dispute was settled after most TV shows and movies were put on pause.
According to the SAG-AFTRA spokesperson, most residuals are “due quarterly.”
“But some, such as reruns of television programs, can be due one to four months after each rerun,” they noted. “The combination of negotiation and strike actions [brought about residuals]. And getting residuals for the first time also includes a negotiation about how many and to what extent older/previously produced shows will participate in the newly bargained terms.”
The residual agreements have been continually updated in an effort to compensate actors properly.
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“As exhibition patterns and types of distribution change the contracts need to change as well. In addition, the residuals formulas often need to be improved as a media market grows. The first residuals for reruns on television didn’t continue in perpetuity and that improvement was negotiated later,” the rep shared with Us. “Same for residuals for foreign television exhibition of television programs. The same thing is happening for residuals associated with shows on the streaming services now. Those formulas get improved in subsequent negotiations.”
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With reporting by Mariel Turner
