Jodie Sweetin played Stephanie Tanner on Full House from 1987 until 1995, then returned to reprise her role for Fuller House. Even though both shows were major hits, during the April 21 episode of the McBride Rewind podcast, the actress revealed that she can’t rely on her residual checks from the shows to pay her bills.
“I got a one-cent check the other day,” the actress admitted. “There’s no syndication anymore because it’s all in streaming. Who gets paid for that? Nobody gets paid for that.”
She continued, “Sure, in my 20s, there would be money, but not reliable. You don’t know how much it’s going to be or how often they’re going to run the show. So, sometimes you’re like, ‘Oh, cool. That was nice.’ And then sometimes you’re like, ‘All right, well, there’s a nice dinner out.'”
Since residuals aren’t reliable, the actress admitted that she tries not to live too extravagantly. "You just kind of don't know,” she said. “So, it's not something you can rely on. I always say, people think I live some extravagant life. I'm like, 'Honey, I drive my 2023 used Hyundai Sonata that I love. I rent my house. I have credit cards that are maxed out.' I live a normal life. And yeah, there are moments when you're like, 'This is going well,' and there are times when you're like, 'I need a day job.'”
She continued, “I'll be honest, I will do it sometimes, where like I'll see somebody, I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, what, why are you… and then I'm like 'A**hole, they're a working actor, too.' Like everybody's got to have a job.”
Apparently, not all sitcom stars have the same experience with residuals. Lisa Kudrow, who starred on Friends from 1994 until 2004, recently revealed how much money she still makes from the hit series. According to Page Six, she stated that “she and her fellow Friends co-stars still earn a whopping $20 million in residuals every year, more than two decades after the hit sitcom came to an end.”
