The Gift of Gab: What Are Residuals?

More money? Yes please.

Voice actors can earn something called a residual. But what is it? How do you get it? How does it help you earn more money?

What Are Residuals? -3:41

Hey guys! Welcome to another edition of The Gift of Gab. Today, we’re continuing our What Is series from my book VO101, and we’re going to talk about a topic that you may have heard of, but you probably don’t totally understand yet: Residuals. Stick around!

So, what exactly are residuals? Well, residuals are when you get paid additional money for work that you’ve already done. It’s literally what actors live for. Residuals are awesome, and usually, they’re predetermined under a contract.

Because ultimately, when a client books you for work, they’re kind of leasing your voice. In many situations, they don’t outright own the material. So, when the term of use for that material expires, if the client wants to continue using it or have access to it, they have to pay for it again—they have to renew the lease. Which is kind of great, right? Yeah, I never really thought of it that way before, but in a weird way, I’m like a car. Residual fees can be a little bit more money than what was paid the first time around.

Interestingly enough, though, residuals can sometimes get smaller and smaller the longer the material has been around. Usually, this is the case when something airs on TV, especially in television, where you often see that residual price drop. You can even look up videos on social media or YouTube of actors showing off their ridiculous residual checks, and it’s always really funny because you’ll have an actor say something like, "I was in a movie 30 years ago, and it must have aired on TBS over the holiday season because I just got a residual check for $212."

There are countless stories like that. I actually had one not too long ago myself. The check was for… $1.11. Yep, can’t even buy a pack of gum with that, but that’s not the point! Because what happens with residuals, obviously for any actor, is they’re cumulative. Those are cumulative earnings over the course of your career. It’s always kind of fun to get a silly little, tiny, goofy residual check later on in your career.

But initially, residuals can be really, really nice, because honestly, sometimes you don’t even know they’re happening. They just sort of… show up. It’s like your agent, manager, or producer calls you and says, “Hey, we’re sending you this check.” And then you look at the pay stub and go, "What’s this for?" Oh, they renewed that project!

It’s just one of the many ways that voice actors continue to earn a living and sustain ourselves in this crazy career. If you want to know more about these sorts of things, then yes, definitely check out my book VO101. Also, be sure to check out my website. And if you have specific questions about voice acting, the career, or what certain things are, send me a message! I would love to hear from you and answer your questions.

Thanks so much! Bye!

704-674-8294 / GabrielleNistico.com / gabby@voiceovervixen.com

Gabrielle Nistico, Gabby Nistico, The Voiceover Vixen, The Business First VO Coach, #VoiceoverVixen #VoiceOnFire #BusinessFirstVOCoach Voiceover, Charlotte, North Carolina, residuals, actor life, money, making money in voiceover, SAG, leasing, residuals for actors, checks