Just five days after reaping Emmy bids, five of the six adult cast members of “Modern Family” filed a lawsuit to void their contracts.
Reigning supporting champs Ty Burrell and Julie Bowen were joined by Jesse Tyler Ferguson, 2010 winner Eric Stonestreet and Sofia Vergara in seeking to exit the show after only three seasons. Each was paid about $65,000 per episode last year while Ed O’Neill, the sixth adult on the show, made just north of $100K per episode. He is negotiating his deal separately.
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As Matthew Belloni of the Hollywood Reporter writes: “The five cast members are being offered salary increases as follows: $150,000 per episode plus a $50,000 per episode bonus for season 4; $200,000 per episode for season 5; $225,000 for season 6; and up to $325,000 for an anticipated season 9. The cast is asking for much more, including more than double the offered salary if the show goes 8 or 9 seasons, as expected.”
Emmy voting begins on Aug. 13, running through the end of the month. That gives the parties just under three weeks to settle this ugly dispute before academy members have a chance to weigh in with their thoughts via the ballot box.
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