How much Donald Trump earns from residuals for TV and Film cameos revealed in new filing
Remember in the early 2010s when, if people asked you about Donald Trump, your response would be: “What, the guy who hosts The Apprentice?” Better times, ay?
Now, over a decade on, Trump is in his second term as President of the United States, and has consistently hinted that he would like to run for a third time (even though it is currently illegal for any president to do so).
Trump got the gig on The Apprentice in part for his business success, making millions prior to becoming known for appearances on TV.
Becoming president has done nothing to slow this trend of Trump making millions however, if anything it’s enhanced it as it was revealed that the orange-flavoured politician made a whopping $1.4 billion from cryptocurrency in 2025.
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Whilst the majority of his money now comes from his business dealings, Trump does still get residuals cheques for his various appearances in TV and Film throughout the years, with the exact figures being revealed in the release of his annual financial filing.
Trump was paid for his cameos in Sex & the City, Little Rascals, and Zoolander, but the biggest payment came from Amazon and his pensions from SAG-AFTRA
A large portion of the residual cheques that Trump received were so tiny that, in his legal filings, they are listed as ‘de minimis’, meaning they range from one cent to $200.
He received payments of this kind from Suddenly Susan, Two Weeks Notice, Spin City, The Associate, Little Rascals and The View, all of which he made small appearances on.
His largest residual cheque outside of his payment from Amazon came in the form of a payment from ‘Entertainment Partners’.
This was not disclosed in its exact amount but ranged from $200-1000 for his appearances in Zoolander and Sex & the City.
His biggest payment however were his Amazon cheque, which was massive, and what he made in his pension.
Trump gets SAG-AFTRA pensions which for most people would be a decent yearly wage, and was paid millions by Amazon
Trump was paid $10.7 million as part of the licensing agreement for the documentary Melania, which was one of the most expensive ever made, as well as a $521,000 payment for an accompanying memoir.
A further payment from Amazon-MGM is a tricky one, however, because it is unclear exactly what he received it for. The company took over the syndication of The Apprentice after Trump and NBC severed their prior relationship and the company stopped showing the TV show.
This additional payment was between $250,000 and $500,000, and it is unclear whether it was for Melania or The Apprentice, but could also be a combination of the two.
Trump does not get any residuals for his cameo appearance in Home Alone 2, but he did use the film to begin paying into a Screen Actor’s Guild (SAG) pension, having done the same for an American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) pension for his role in the Razzie nominated Ghosts Can’t Do It.
His SAG pension for the last year totalled $77,808, and his AFTRA pension was $8,724. Trump pre-emptively quit SAG after Jan 6th after votes were taken to expel him for his role in January 6th, but even non-members are able to receive their pensions.
Topics: TV and Film, Donald Trump, TV, Film, Money
Michael Slavin