In the world of television, only a handful of TV shows have managed to create the impact that Seinfeld has. Created by Jerry Seinfeld and Larry David, the show ran for 9 successful seasons, from 1989 to 1998, and has continued to enjoy enduring popularity. Leaving an indelible mark on the history of television, the show was not without challenges.
Back in 1998, Jason Alexander, revealed how he found himself at the center of a heated debate over actor salaries. Feeling that his per-episode salary demand was outrageous, the actor felt his demands had potentially damaged the economics of television history as a whole.
Jason Alexander’s Outrageous Salary Demand for Seinfeld
While Jerry Seinfeld has continued to enjoy massive success thanks to his hit NBC show of the 1990s, his three on-screen best friends too deserve equal acclaim. Starring Jason Alexander as George Costanza, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Elaine Benes, and Michael Richards as Cosmo Kramer, the trio has been as important to the show’s success as Seinfeld has been.
Despite being in one of the most popular shows of all time, the show was not proving to be as vital to the trio’s career as it was for Seinfeld. As Alexander revealed in an old interview with Charlie Rose, the three of them were denied syndication points, something that has now made Seinfeld a billionaire (see New York Post). Not seeing any benefit of staying in the show for a long time, Alexander and his two co-stars hence did their own research,
It was not a wild [idea], there had been actual research though. We knew that for the network alone, every episode of Seinfeld generated $14 million of profit… We had argued that after five years of being in Seinfeld, there was no upside, in the long run for the three of us to continue doing the show… So we argued that we needed to be cut in on syndication… And we were told in no small terms to go take a hike.
Unable to secure a deal and denied syndication, the trio was then forced to have outrageous salary demands.
When we got into the bargaining chair… we said again, ‘Syndication. Our salaries are fine, but you are making such massive profits in syndication… ‘ In order for us to feel good about doing this show, I wanna leave the most successful half hour in the history of television knowing that I never have to work again. That is what I require or you can’t have my services.
Revealed Jason Alexander. While their initial demand was over a million dollars each for the three of them, the network and actors eventually settled on $600,000 per episode. A ridiculously high figure back then for television stars, Alexander later felt they had destroyed television economics with their outrageous demand.
Jason Alexander Felt He Destroyed Television Economics with His Seinfeld Salary
Jason Alexander remains best known for his iconic portrayal of George Costanza on Seinfeld—a role that, even during the show’s early days, he worried might define his career. Despite his diverse body of work and numerous other roles, his legacy is still largely shaped by his time on the hit NBC series. Given the impact of the role on his career, he was deserving of his $600,000 paycheck.
So while the ‘ridiculously’ high salary he demanded might have set him for life, Alexander back then felt guilty about initially asking the network for a million dollars each per episode as well as the sum he eventually got. Even though the figure was calculated based on their contribution to the show, the actor still felt troubled by their outrageous demands after the show ended.
And I also knew that it was detrimental to television if they made the deal with us… It is outrageous up-front money, outrageous. It is bad for television. Thirteen million dollars an episode for E.R.? A million dollar… for a show that’s number 25 to 30 in the ratings? These are bad prices… And I personally feel that we damaged the economics of television and that NBC was foolish to give us what they gave us.
While he candidly expressed the demands as harmful to the television industry back then, there is no denying that $600,000 ultimately proved vital for him and his life. As the actor remains appreciative of his time on the show, this throwback highlights that actors, whether lead or supporting cast, should be paid the salary they deserve even when it might seem ridiculously high or outrageous at times.
Seinfeld can be streamed on Netflix.
