Breaking Bad star Aaron Paul reveals that he gets zero residuals from Netflix. Paul played Jesse Pinkman in AMC’s highly acclaimed drama, the show’s deuteragonist who is recruited by his former high school chemistry teacher, Walter White (Bryan Cranston), to produce and distribute crystal meth. Paul received much acclaim for his captivating performance which helped propel Breaking Bad to one of the best TV shows of all time. The series has also achieved enduring popularity on Netflix, though Paul asserts that the cast’s compensation hasn’t always mirrored that massive success.
As the SAG-AFTRA strike continues, Paul recently reunited with Cranston and other members of the Breaking Bad cast on the picket lines. Talking to The Independent, Paul highlighted one of the biggest issues with the current pay structure – residuals from streaming services. The actor says he gets zero residuals from Netflix for Breaking Bad and told the streamer “it’s time to pony up” and pay people a fair wage. Read his comments below:
I don’t get a piece from Netflix on Breaking Bad to be totally honest and that’s insane to me. I think a lot of these streamers know that they have been getting away with not paying people a fair wage and now it’s time to pony up.
Streaming Residuals Continue To Take Center Stage In The Actors’ Strike
Residuals, which are additional payments paid to actors when TV shows are replayed, continue to be a key issue in the SAG-AFTRA strike. While there are more regulations in place to ensure that stars receive fair residuals when shows are rerun on television, streaming is still relatively new and there aren’t as many regulations in place for fair pay. There’s nothing stopping Netflix from paying pennies to actors, such as This is Us star Mandy Moore, or nothing in the case of South Korean actors. Grey’s Anatomy’s Ellen Pompeo is another actor who spoke out about the issue.
The Breaking Bad star is now the latest actor to call out Netflix over the issue and as the winner of three Primetime Emmy Awards for his outstanding performance as Jesse Pinkman, he might just be the biggest name yet. Paul’s comments will hopefully bring more attention to the issue of massive companies like Netflix under-compensating its creatives, whether it be actors or writers who are also currently on strike fighting for fair residuals. But right now, the AMPTP is refusing to negotiate with the actors’ guild.
