How Much Did the Cast of 'Gilmore Girls' Get Paid for the Revival?

February 2024 · 3 minute read

Gilmore Girls fans hope the timing is right for a second Netflix revival of the beloved series. While no official announcement has been made, several key cast and crew members have had their schedules clear up in recent months. Netflix is also hunting for a surefire win, and a second Gilmore Girls revival feels like a good fit. How much could Netflix dull out in salaries, though? The cast of Gilmore Girls made a pretty nice paycheck for the first four-episode revival. 

Lauren Graham and Alexis Bledel both made $750,000 for ‘Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life’ 

While the entire cast is what made Gilmore Girls special, Alexis Bledel and Lauren Graham are considered the stars of the series. As mother and daughter duo, Rory and Lorelai Gilmore, Bledel, and Graham were the original show’s actual draw. That didn’t change for the revival. The streaming service provider paid them handsomely to get the duo back for the Netflix Original. 

According to a survey conducted by Variety, Bledel and Graham earned $750,000 for each of the limited series’ four episodes. They walked away with about $3 million for their time when all was said and done. 

Their Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life paychecks were a big upgrade. Before filming the revival, Graham appeared on Parenthood, where she was rumored to earn about $100,000 per episode. Bledel landed a big role after Gilmore Girls, too. She starred in A Handmaid’s Tale. While her earnings for the series are unknown, Elisabeth Moss, whose character was equally important, is rumored to have earned around $1 million a season. Bledel recently decided to step away from the series. She issued a public statement regarding her decision in May 2022. 

Scott Patterson described his revival paycheck as a ‘windfall’ 

Scott Patterson played an important role in Gilmore Girls and Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life. His role in the revival was important enough to earn a large paycheck, although it’s unclear exactly how much he made. This much is for sure, though; Patterson considered it a good amount of money. 

In a 2017 interview with Wealth Management, Patterson was asked about his revival paycheck and how it changed his financial plan going forward. While he opted not to reveal how much he was paid, he did describe the payout as a “windfall.” Patterson said, “It’s always good to get a big windfall. It just puts me in a better position for retirement; it puts my kid in a better position. I got very lucky when I got that job back in 2000.” 

Is money holding the cast back from returning for a second revival? 

There apparently is only one reason a second revival hasn’t happened yet, and it has nothing to do with money. Amy Sherman-Palladino recently revealed that a second revival hadn’t happened yet because the timing just hasn’t been right yet. 

Several key cast members have insisted they are interested in returning. Lauren Graham has a clause in all her contracts stating she can film more Gilmore Girls. Sherman-Palladino wrote the same clause into her Amazon Studios contract. Scott Patterson, Keiko Agena, Kelly Bishop, and Milo Ventimiglia have all said they could be persuaded to return to Stars Hollow once more. 

RELATED: The ‘Gilmore Girls’ Cast Never Filmed on the East Coast

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