Melanie Lynskey sets the record straight on her Two and a Half Men pay

What BBN said about it

1. 

   Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentMelanie Lynskey says the internet's number for her Two and a Half Men pay was off by a factor of ten, and joining us is economist Ignatius Obuya, author of Who Got the Check?

2. IO

   Ignatius ObuyaThanks for having me. I predicted this rumor, and I predicted the denial, so I'm having a very good morning.

3. 

   Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentThe viral claim was two hundred thousand dollars an episode. She wrote that she made literally one tenth of that. Were you surprised?

4. IO

   Ignatius ObuyaNo. Strictly speaking, I expected one tenth, which is twenty thousand, so really twenty-one thousand. The calculator's nine key is broken, so I round up.

5. 

   Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentShe says she started at twenty thousand dollars an episode, with what she believes was a five percent raise each season.

6. IO

   Ignatius ObuyaStrictly speaking, five percent compounds, so call it twenty-six thousand a season. I did the math on this calculator. Twice.

7. 

   Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentHer biggest check was about forty-three thousand dollars, for one episode in the final season. And she estimates she kept roughly half.

8. IO

   Ignatius ObuyaHalf after agents, managers, business managers and the taxman. Strictly speaking, that's four people who did less acting and made real money.

9. 

   Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentSo the rumor didn't just inflate her number. It inflated the whole group chat's.

10. IO

    Ignatius ObuyaExactly. I predicted that too, and strictly speaking, I'd like a cut of this segment.

11. 

    Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentSixty-three of two hundred sixty-two episodes, according to Netflix Junkie. Does that change your math?

12. IO

    Ignatius ObuyaIt changes my book sales. Strictly speaking, I'd have written a longer one.

13. 

    Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentVerdict on the rumor: wrong by a factor of ten, confirmed by the one person who saw the check.

14. 

    Kenji Moonfield · Internet & Trends CorrespondentFive people split that check, and she's the only one who had to say the lines.