Report: 'Big Bang' stars sign deal

Season 7 of the very popular comedy "The Big Bang Theory" had its finale on May 15. Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco play Leonard and Penny, who just got engaged on the series. Here is a primer on the show's characters:

Simon Helberg plays Howard Wolowitz, an aerospace engineer who started out as a bit of a creeper of women, but these days is happily married.

Jim Parsons has won three Emmys for his portrayal of physicist Sheldon Cooper, who is as clueless about social interaction as he is knowledgeable about science. He is "dating" Amy Farrah Fowler.

Three-time Emmy nominee Mayim Bialik plays Amy Farrah Fowler, a scientist who is involved with Sheldon. She also believes she is best friends with Penny.

Cuoco plays Penny, a waitress who can't quite match wits with her group of friends, but nevertheless hangs out with them. She lives across the hall from Sheldon and her now fiance Leonard.

Melissa Rauch plays Bernadette Rostenkowski-Wolowitz. She is a highly paid scientist who is married to Howard. A frequent joke in the show is how she can be as overbearing as his mother.

"Roseanne" alum Galecki stars as Leonard Hofstadter, Sheldon's long-suffering roommate and Penny's future husband. He is a physicist.

Kunal Nayyar plays Rajesh Ramayan "Raj" Koothrappali, a shy astrophysicist who up until recently could only talk to women after he drank alcohol. He is desperate to find true love and recently, finally found a girlfriend.

• Production had been stalled during negotiations


• Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco reportedly will own more of the show


• Two other cast members are said to still be in negotiations

(CNN) -- "Big Bang Theory" fans can breathe a sigh of relief.

According to Deadline, the stars of the hit CBS series have agreed to hefty pay increases for the new season. Quoting unnamed sources, the publication reports that Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki and Kaley Cuoco have secured three-year deals for "$1 million per episode for the 72 episodes the show is slated to produce in Seasons 8-10."

According to reports, the trio will also have an increased stake in the show's backend profits.

It's been said that the trio previously received more than $300,000 per episode.

The Hollywood Reporter confirmed the deal in its story and said co-stars Kunal Nayyar and Simon Helberg were still in negotiations but expected to sign a deal soon.

Warner Bros. Television told CNN that "we aren't commenting on the speculation at this time." Earlier, the company confirmed that "ongoing contract negotiations" had caused production on "The Big Bang Theory's" eighth season to be postponed. Production had been scheduled to begin July 30.

Warner Bros. is owned by CNN's parent company.

The new deals would put Parsons, Galecki and Cuoco in the same territory as the former cast of "Friends," who also negotiated for pay raises at the height of their show's popularity.

The popular series was renewed in March. Mayim Bialik and Melissa Rauch, who also appear on the show, are reported to have received raises in September.

CNN's Carolyn Sung contributed to this report.