Lisa Kudrow reveals 'Friends' cast still earns $20M a year in royalties two decades later

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: 'Friends' star Lisa Kudrow, aka Phoebe Buffay, has finally spoken about how much she and her co-stars still make from the popular 1990s sitcom, and the amount is surprisingly large.

In an interview with the Times of London on Thursday, April 23, the Emmy-winning actress revealed the figure while reflecting on the show that made her famous as the quirky and kind-hearted Phoebe Buffay.

For those who may not know, 'Friends' ran for 10 seasons from 1994 to 2004. More than two decades after it ended, it is still considered one of the most popular and successful sitcoms in television history and continues to generate strong earnings for its main cast.

Lisa Kudrow reveals how much 'Friends' cast still earns from the sitcom

Lisa Kudrow shared in a recent interview that the cast of 'Friends' continues to earn a huge amount in residuals, with each member reportedly making around $20 million every year from royalties.

In the same conversation, Kudrow also spoke about her co-stars Jennifer Aniston, David Schwimmer, Matthew Perry, and Courteney Cox, reflecting on their close bond during and after the show.

Kudrow, now 63, was 31 when she began playing Phoebe and was the oldest of the main cast when the series first started.

For those unaware, the show’s success transformed their careers, with early salaries around 22,500 dollars per episode in season one eventually rising to about 1 million dollars per episode in the final seasons, 9 and 10.

Lisa Kudrow pays emotional tribute to Matthew Perry

During the same interview, Kudrow also spoke about her late co-star Matthew Perry and his sudden passing. She shared that revisiting the show after his death changed the way she viewed their work.

"After Matthew died, I watched the show again."

"Before, I only saw what I did wrong or could have done better. But for the first time, I truly appreciated just how great it was." She added, Perry “was just beyond (them) all” as Chandler Bing.

Kudrow praised the performances of her co-stars. She said she “felt (she) did ok” as Phoebe Buffay but praised Aniston and Cox for their portrayals of Rachel Green and Monica Geller.

She continued, “Because there was a genius at work. And whatever any of us do in the future, we will never experience something like that again.” She also appreciated Schwimmer and LeBlanc for their comedic work as Ross Geller and Joey Tribbiani.