or


[03/13/03 - 12:00 AM]
Production Halted on 'Sopranos'
By Brian Ford Sullivan (TFC)

CHICAGO (thefutoncritic.com) -- Production on the fifth season of HBO's "The Sopranos" has been halted indefinitely due to a breakdown in salary negotiations with series star James Gandolfini. Shooting was scheduled to being March 24.

The conflict stems from competiting lawsuits filed by Gandolfini and HBO against each other last week over the actor's status with the show. Gandolfini's lawsuit alleges HBO did not notify him within the agreed upon 10 days after the show's fifth season was ordered on July 17, 2001. According to Gandolfini's representatives, such a move would make his contract for a fifth season void and not require him to show up for shooting on March 24. Calling the lawsuit "frivolous," HBO has counter-sued Gandolfini for $100 million in damages that would be caused due to his absence from the series.

Gandolfini's lawsuit is viewed by many as simply a negotiating ploy to increase his salary for the fifth season. Currently the actor is making a surprisingly average $400,000 per episode considering "The Sopranos" critical and financial success, below such actors as Ray Romano, the "Friends" cast and Kelsey Grammer but on par with "The West Wing's" Martin Sheen.

HBO has reportedly offered Gandolfini $11 million to return for the 13-episode fifth season, part of which was to be paid in profit participation. But the actor is said to have been asking for $27 million for season five, and $16.7 million for a sixth season should that get ordered, for an average of $21 million per season for a fifth and sixth batch.

Recently fellow "Sopranos" stars Michael Imperioli, Tony Sirico, Drea de Matteo, Jamie-Lynn Sigler and Robert Iler renegotiated their contracts with HBO to more than triple their salaries. Imperioli is set to make $80,000 per episode for season five while the remaining trio will be paid in the neighborhood of $60,000 an episode for the upcoming season. Previously all four made between $15,000-$25,000 an episode.

With production halted it is extremely unlikely the fifth season of the series will be ready before January 2004.




  [march 2003]  
S
M
T
W
T
F
S
      


· FRIENDS (NBC)
· SOPRANOS, THE (HBO)
· WEST WING, THE (NBC)








[04/16/14 - 12:30 PM]
Two-Time Oscar(R) Nominee Jeremy Renner to Narrate "The World Wars"
The three-night event series premieres Memorial Day, May 26 at 9:00/8:00c on History.
[04/16/14 - 12:08 PM]
Chicago Fire Host New England Revolution Saturday at 4 P.M. ET on NBCSN
The two teams last met in September when Chicago's Alex scored the game-winning goal in the 86th minute of play to put the Fire ahead 3-2.
[04/16/14 - 12:07 PM]
Strong Debut for FX's Universally Acclaimed Limited Series Fargo?" You Betcha!!!
FX spins the numbers for Tuesday, April 15.
[04/16/14 - 12:04 PM]
"Live with Kelly and Michael" Broadcasts Live from the White House Easter Egg Roll April 21, 2014
Michael Strahan will broadcast live from the annual White House Easter Egg Roll in the Jacqueline Kennedy Garden outside of the East Wing of the White House.
[04/16/14 - 11:42 AM]
ESPN's Coverage of 2014 Men's Division I Frozen Four Increases Viewership
ESPN spins the numbers for Thursday, April 10 and Saturday, April 12.
[04/16/14 - 11:39 AM]
TLC Explores the Fast-Paced Lives and Memorable Stories of Emergency Medical Techs in New Series "OMG EMT!"
The four-part series bows Saturday, May 3 at 10:00/9:00c on the cable channel.
[04/16/14 - 11:03 AM]
Time and Network for ESPN's 2014 Season-Opening Neutral Site College Football Schedule
The lineup will showcase five teams ranked in an early ESPN.com preseason top 25 poll for 2014 on Saturday, August 30.
[04/16/14 - 10:48 AM]
Princess Twilight Sparkle Struggles to Prove Herself as a Princess in the Fourth Season Finale of "My Little Pony Friendship Is Magic" on the Hub Network, May 10
In addition, on April 28, a new My Little Pony game, "My Little Pony Friendship is Magic Rainbow Falls Flight School" will launch on HubNetwork.com.
[04/16/14 - 10:38 AM]
2014 WNBA Draft: Most-Watched Ever on ESPN2
ESPN spins the numbers for Monday, April 14.
[04/16/14 - 10:09 AM]
Stars of ABC Family's "Melissa & Joey" and "Baby Daddy" to Participate in Live Twitter Chat with Fans During East Coast Broadcasts Tonight
Starting at 8:00/7:00c, fans can tweet Christopher Rich at @AceCharmer and Melissa Peterman at @Followtheblonde.
[04/16/14 - 10:03 AM]
GSN Announces a New Lineup of Competitors for Third Season of "The American Bible Challenge," Premiering Thursday, May 22 at 8 PM (ET/PT)
Season three premieres with two back-to-back original episodes on Thursday, May 22 at 8:00/7:00c, and will air new episodes every Thursday at 8:00/7:00c.
[04/16/14 - 10:00 AM]
E!'s "Live from the Red Carpet" Exclusively Broadcasts from the Inaugural iHeartRadio Music Awards
Giuliana Rancic and Terrence Jenkins will host the one-hour special, airing Thursday, May 1 at 7:00/6:00c.
[04/16/14 - 09:59 AM]
Spike TV Orders a Second Season of "Catch a Contractor" Starring Adam Carolla
The new episodes - due this fall - will be an hour long, up from season one's half-hour episodes.
[04/16/14 - 09:46 AM]
"Shark Tank: Swimming with Sharks" - Swim in the Shark-Infested Waters with a Unique Look Behind-the-Scenes of the Hit Show Airing Friday, May 2, 8 pm on ABC
In keeping with the evening's theme, an all-new, original episode of "Shark Tank" will air immediately following at 9:00/8:00c.
[04/16/14 - 09:22 AM]
"NCIS: Los Angeles" and "Person of Interest" Win Time Periods in Viewers and Key Demographics
CBS spins the numbers for Tuesday, April 15.