Lauren Graham is spilling some hot Luke’s coffee when it comes to her paycheck.
The Gilmore Girls alum, who starred alongside Alexis Bledel on the WB series from 2000 to 2007 and in the 2016 four-episode revival on Netflix, detailed how much she gets paid now that the show has become popular on streaming platforms. “There really are no residuals on Netflix,” Lauren said during a March 19 appearance on Jimmy Kimmel Live. “But I’ve been paid in love and appreciation.” While Lauren said she doesn’t make money from residuals-payments typically made to actors and the creative teams behind TV shows due to reruns, syndication or streaming deals-actors have been trying to make changes in Hollywood, with residuals being key discussion point of both the writer and actor strikes in 2023. And for Lauren, her lack of compensation may be surprising to fans who have seen how much the show skyrocketed in popularity after it started streaming on Netflix.
“We have definitely reached more people than we were reaching on The WB,” Lauren continued. “And now it’s trickled into younger people, older people, men whose kids or wives probably have forced them to watch it. Yeah, I get stopped a lot. It surprises me every time though.” Although the 58-year-old-who dated fellow Parenthood alum Peter Krause from 2010 to 2021-may not be growing her bank account as a result of her time on the show, she has been open about her undying appreciation for getting to play Lorelai Gilmore.
“It’s the best part I ever had,” Lauren said during a February appearance on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. “I love doing it, and I think it was really wonderful. It’s just that thing where it was the perfect material at the perfect time with the perfect writer-and it just means so much to me.” Despite her love for her former job, the Z-Suite star admitted the fandom can sometimes border on being too much. “It can be strange at times,” she added. “On one hand, people are starting to say, like, ‘You raised me,’ and I’m like, ‘I hope there were other adults involved.’ And then, on the other hand, people are like, ‘I just have the show on in the background. It puts my dog to sleep. We’re not even listening anymore.