The history of animated television shows is a unique one, especially when shining a light on animated shows geared towards an older audience. Shows like The Simpsons and South Park have been around for ages, and they have both left a lasting impression on the animation game.

Family Guy is another classic animated series, and the show has done an amazing job of staying relevant while giving fans new episodes to sink their teeth into each season. The show's been around forever, and fans have grown curious about how much it costs to make a single episode.

Let's take a closer look at Family Guy and see how much it costs to bring an episode to life.

'Family Guy' Is A Classic Series

In January of 1999, Family Guy made its debut on the small screen, and fans at the time had no idea that the animated series would develop into a full-on media juggernaut that conquered pop culture. Created by Seth MacFarlane, this series was just what television audiences were looking for at the end of the 90s.

Currently, in the midst of its 20th season, Family Guy has demonstrated an incredible amount of staying power during the last 22 years. It has been canceled and revived, which is a rare feat. The fans have been responsible for keeping the show around, and they have been instrumental in its continued success on the small screen.

At this point, the series has nothing left to accomplish, but just like South Park and The Simpsons, it shows no signs of slowing down.

Naturally, the voice cast has been making a ton of money while voicing the Griffin clan on the show.

Related: Why George Lucas Was Uncomfortable With 'Family Guy's' Parody Of 'Star Wars'

The Voice Cast Has Made Bank

Voice acting is a lucrative part of performing, and some stars have made a ton of money by being exceptional in this area. Thanks to the massive success of Family Guy, it goes without saying that the primary voice cast has been doing quite well for themselves financially throughout the years.

Back in 2013, The Hollywood Reporter touched on a major raise that the cast was given at the time.

As the site reported, "According to multiple sources, the four-member voice cast was able to secure between $175,000 and $225,000 each per episode for at least two more seasons — and as many as five seasons of the series. The deal will go into effect with the 12th season, currently in production, which is expected to roll out in the fall of 2014."

It is rare to see voice actors making this type of money, but then again, it is rare for an animated series to become this popular with mainstream audiences. However, we have seen shows like The Simpsons shell out the big bucks for their voice stars.

Given these huge salaries and the fact that an entire production team is needed to bring a single episode to life each week, it stands to reason that a single episode of Family Guy would be pretty expensive to make.

Related: What Happens To 'Family Guy' If Seth McFarlane Leaves Fox?

One Episode Can Cost Up To $2 Million

So, how much does it cost to make a single episode of Family Guy? Well, while the show might not have been too expensive in its early seasons, these days, a single episode can cost the network millions.

According to PSU, "While an anime series might cost $2 million to $4 million USD to make in total, Family Guy costs $2 million dollars PER EPISODE to produce. There are big reasons why Family Guy costs so much. At one point each voice actor on the show was making $300,000 an episode, which is absolutely ludicrous."

This particular write-up does show a bump in pay for the voice cast. $2 million for a single episode of the show sounds like a lot, but the truth is that Family Guy has been making the network a ton of money for years on end.

Per Fast Company, "At a reported $2 million per episode, Family Guy has garnered at least $400 million up front from syndication. DVD sales have totaled almost another $400 million, while 80 licensees have contributed at least $200 million from sales of various clothing and baubles, actual and digital. Fox’s ad revenue off Family Guy can be estimated at at least $500 million over the years."

Related: What The Creators Of 'Family Guy' And 'The Simpsons' Really Think About Each Other's Shows

It may take a couple million to get a single episode of Family Guy off of the ground, but clearly, the juice is worth the squeeze for the folks at Fox.

Next: The Reason There Was A 'Simpsons' And 'Family Guy' Crossover Episode