10. E.R. - $2 Million Per Episode
NBCNowadays medical dramas are pretty common, but when it first came on the scene in 1994, E.R. broke all kinds of new ground. The show ended its run in 2009 with 15 seasons, 331 episodes and 23 Emmy Awards to show for it. Add to those accolades another 124 Emmy nominations, making it the most critically acclaimed drama program in history. During those 15 years, the cast changed dramatically. No main character stuck around for the entire run of the show. Many of them became famous enough to transition into leading movie roles (like George Clooney). Alternatively, other movie stars chose to take a break from the silver screen and enjoy guest appearances on the show. Some of the more well-received appearances that even managed to garner Emmy nominations were those of Forest Whitaker, Don Cheadle, William H. Macy, Sally Field, James Woods, Stanley Tucci and Ray Liotta who even earned an Emmy for his guest spot. Success didnt come cheap for E.R. The show started out strong with a $2 million budget for each episode for the first three seasons. Then came the period when E.R. was at its peak in terms of success and the cost of an episode ballooned to a record-breaking $13 million between seasons 4 and 6. The budget went down to about $8 million starting with season 7, but it was still one of the most expensive shows on television.