It might well be, next season of “Modern Family” will bring about some changes if negotiations don’t end on good terms. Five members of the “Modern Family” cast decided to sue studio 20th Century Fox over money and illegally extending contracts.
This Tuesday, Sofia Vergara, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Eric Stonestreet, Julie Bowen and Ty Burrell filed a lawsuit against studio 20th Century Fox. They argue despite the success “Modern Family” had, the studio isn’t willing to increase their paychecks. The “Modern Family” lawsuit reads the studio made them sign contracts that are in fact illegal under California law.
The five megastars in “Modern Family” claim the studio is violating a California state law that reads personal service contracts cannot be extended for more than seven years. Obviously any good lawyer knows this is only a scheme used in common contract negotiating that would give the five actors a standing point in getting more money.
“Modern Family has been a breakout critical and financial success. That success, however, has been built upon a collection of illegal contracts” reads the “Modern Family” cast lawsuit. The complaint also explains the actors are bind “to work on Modern Family (and preclude them from other work) beyond seven years after the execution of the Agreements”. The cast seeks “a judicial declaration that the Agreements are illegal and void under California law”.
The Hollywood Reporter writes Ed O’Neill decided to join the lawsuit too. He was already in negotiations with the studio over his paycheck, but decided to join the rest of the cast out of solidarity.
A source told The Hollywood Reporter, the studio is willing to offer Vergara, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Eric Stonestreet, Julie Bowen and Ty Burrell a $150,000 increase per episode and another $50,000 episode bonus for season 4. They are also being offered $200,000 for each episode in season 5 and $225,000 for season 6.
But the cast wants more than that, arguing the show has been making a lot of money. The five actors got only $65,000 for an episode in season 3, while the show made $164 million in advertising revenue alone last year.
