#43: Charlie Sheen

TV Show: Two and a Half Men

Amount: $27 million per year

In the TV landscape of 2011, Two and a Half Men stood tall as one of Chuck Lorre’s prized sitcoms on CBS. With the comedic talents of 1980s movie legends Charlie Sheen and Jon Cryer, the show was a riot until it was smack dab in the middle of a messy public feud.

Things turned sour when Sheen, already raking in a hefty paycheck and royalties, demanded even more money from the network. His fiery exchange with Lorre led to his abrupt firing from the show. But fast forward a couple of years, and Sheen managed to turn the tables, selling off his rights to those lucrative royalties for a cool $27 million.