Three weeks after its release, Shonda Rhimes’ Queen Charlotte: A Bridgerton Story, is still reigning supreme as the number one show on Netflix.

The limited series, which follows young Queen Charlotte and her marriage to King George III of England, is a prequel to Rhimes’ hit Bridgerton series, and has amassed more than 390 million viewing hours globally since its release on May 4th. The series is on track to become one of the most-watched series of all time—Rhimes' Bridgerton (seasons one and two) and Inventing Anna are currently on the list.

But Rhimes is no stranger to hits—Rhimes has had a lucrative career creating hit TV shows, including Scandal, and How to Get Away With Murder. The Greys Anatomy creator is the self-proclaimed highest-paid showrunner in Hollywood, according to Essence, and has a net worth of $160 million, according to Celebrity Net Worth. 

Rhimes ranked 18th on Forbes Highest-Paid Entertainers list in 2022, bringing in an estimated $81 million through her deal with Netflix and residuals from ABC for Grey’s. Forbes estimated that Rhimes had earned more than $350 million pre-tax in her career as a showrunner through June 2021. 

ABC

Before her entry into Netflix, Rhimes was one of network television’s top showrunners, with three shows—Grey’s Anatomy, Scandal, and How to Get Away With Murder—airing back-to-back on ABC’s primetime lineup on Thursdays. The shows were created by Rhimes’ production company, Shondaland. 

In 2018, Forbes reported Rhimes’ net worth came almost entirely from her time at ABC, where she earned $10 million a year in her last few years with the network, and received 10% of the profits when her shows were syndicated, or sold to streaming services at an estimated $1 million per episode. 

Rhimes went from earning about $30,000 per episode for writing and producing Grey’s in its earlier seasons, to $250,000 per episode, according to Forbes. Rhimes is estimated to have brought in more than $2 billion in revenue to ABC’s parent company, Disney. Rhimes’ Kerry Washington-starrer, Scandal, brought in $100 million per season in ad revenue, according to Forbes.

Rhimes’ Grey’s Anatomy is the longest-running medical drama on American television (a record previously set by NBC’s hit show, ER), and is currently on its 19th season, according to People.

In 2021, the showrunner earned an estimated $8 million in producing fees for Grey’s Anatomy and Station 19, and an additional $17 million in profits from Grey’s, Scandal, and How to Get Away With Murder, per Forbes.

Netflix

In 2017, Rhimes left ABC and entered into an exclusive deal with Netflix, worth an estimated $100 to $150 million, according to The Hollywood Reporter. In 2021, after Rhimes’ Bridgerton became one of the platform’s most-watched original series ever, Netflix extended the contract for another five years, along with significant bonuses that could push the overall value of the deal to over $300 million, according to The Hollywood Reporter. 

Rhimes reportedly earned about $40 million in bonuses from Netflix in 2021, thanks to Bridgerton’s success, per Forbes. Rhimes’ Netflix original series successes include Bridgerton, Inventing Anna, and most recently, Queen Charlotte.