According to Puck News, 26-year-old Zendeya will earn around US$1 million (approx. AUD$1.5 million) per episode in the upcoming season of Euphoria.
The staggering sum is said to be the result of a salary renegotiation Zendaya just finalized with HBO that, if proven, would make her one of the highest-paid television actors in Hollywood.
Zendaya became the series’ executive producer for its second season, becoming the youngest person to receive an Emmy nomination for production at age 25, following a historic 2020 win for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series.
Despite repeated mixed reactions to the series, the quality of her performance was a point on which fans and critics alike could agree.
Paying Euphoria stars has been a hot topic, particularly since a 2022 Hollywood Reporter profile in which Sidney Sweeney said, “They don’t pay actors like they used to, and with streamers, you no longer get residuals. The established stars still get paid, but I have to give 5 percent to my lawyer, 10 percent to my agents, 3 percent or something like that to my business manager. I have to pay my publicist every month, and that’s more than my mortgage.”
Puck’s Matthew Belloni listed a handful of other A-listers with seven-figure TV salaries, including Michael Keaton at Dopesick, Jason Sudekis at Ted Lasso, and Elisabeth Moss at Shining Girls, while the current highest-paid TV actor is believed to be John Krasinski in Jack ryan (Krasinski’s reported $2 million per episode is also a factor in his role as executive producer, and figuring out those salaries “is a blurry science,” writes Belloni.)
Apparently, due to her Emmy wins as well as her thriving career outside of Euphoria, Zendaya’s salary is pretty high. It’s a staple of Marvel’s two major Hollywood franchises, Spider-Man and Dune, with the latter releasing its second installment in November.
Euphoria was one of HBO’s biggest hits, and the show is unlikely to end with its third season. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Zendaya said she hopes the show will explore the lives of the main characters after they graduate and enter college and/or adulthood.
