The Million-Dollar Club: Zendaya Set To Earn $1 Million Per Episode On “Euphoria”

Is there anything Zendaya can’t do?

The two-time Emmy Award-winning actress is making headlines for reportedly re-negotiating her Euphoria contract. The Los Angeles Times reports the 26-year-old will now earn $1 million per episode in the show’s new season.

The deal will make her one of the highest-paid television actors in Hollywood and probably the youngest.

Zendaya stars in the HBO Max hit show as Rue, a troubled teen who falls down the dark path of addiction after her father’s death. She also holds the title of executive producer for the show. Zendaya became the youngest to receive an Emmy nomination for producing at 25, followed by a historic win in 2020 for Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama Series. With the show receiving mixed reviews because of depictions of youth drug use and more, she hopes the show does more than trigger people. “My greatest wish for Euphoria was that it could help heal people,” Zendaya said during her 2022 acceptance speech.

“I want you to know that anyone who has loved a Rue or feels like they are a Rue, I want you to know I’m so grateful for your stories, and I carry them with me, and I carry them with her.”

Actor payments have been a hot topic, especially for the hit show’s cast. Co-star Sydney Sweeney lit a fire during a profile piece for the Hollywood Reporter. “They don’t pay actors like they used to, and with streamers, you no longer get residuals,” Sweeney said, told by GQ. “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.”

Hitting the $1 million mark makes the former Disney channel star the youngest, highest-paid Black female actor on television. She is in good company as Angela Bassett set a record for the highest-earning Black female actor on television, earning $450,000 per episode on FOX’s 9-1-1. Kerry Washington earned over $1 million an episode on Hulu’s Little Fires Everywhere.