Paying Dr. Dorian: Braff in a ‘Scrubs’ windfall

LOS ANGELES - Zach Braff is about to land a big payday, as long as his hospital comedy “Scrubs” gets renewed by NBC for a seventh season.

The actor has cut a one-year deal with “Scrubs” producer ABC TV Studio that will pay him about $350,000 an episode for the 2007-08 season of “Scrubs,” sources said. Each season consists of about two dozen episodes.

Braff’s deal is contingent on NBC picking up the show for a seventh year, which is expected, notwithstanding its lowly season-to-date viewership of 6.9 million people, according to Nielsen Media Research.

If so, Braff’s new deal would place him among the highest-paid male actors on TV, alongside “Two and a Half Men” star Charlie Sheen, whose paycheck also is in the $350,000-per-episode range.

Representatives for Braff and ABC Television declined comment.

Braff is the anchor of the ensemble on “Scrubs,” playing the amiable medical intern John “J.D.” Dorian. Braff’s star has been on the rise during the past few years thanks to “Scrubs” and the strong response to his turn as writer, director and star of the 2004 indie romantic comedy “Garden State.”

His upcoming projects include a starring role in the comedy “The Ex,” and he is slated to star and direct the drama “Open Hearts” for Paramount Pictures.

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