The battle between The Big Bang Theory‘s stars and studio continues to rage on. Talks will reportedly continue through the weekend, with both sides intent on getting a deal in place by Sunday night. Which seems like a good thing (everyone is working together for a common goal!). But is it? Let’s see what Variety‘s Cynthia Littleton says:
The talks between the studio and reps for the thesps — Jim Parsons, Johnny Galecki, Kaley Cuoco, Simon Helberg and Kunal Nayyar — have been stepped up in the past few days. But sources close to the situation say the process has been slowed by the fact that the actors’ reps are negotiating separately and most are focused on achieving pay parity — which means that each is holding out to hear what the latest offer is for the others before committing to a three-season deal.
So things — unlike the show’s formulaic jokes and gross misrepresentation of nerd culture — remain complicated. Are there any big, round, eye-popping numbers we can grasp onto to make this easier to understand? Yep!
The money on the table for the actors is considerable — around $1 million an episode for Parsons, Galecki and Cuoco, plus a larger sliver of the backend — but so are the profits that “Big Bang” is generating in syndication.
Considering Parsons has much more leverage than the rest of the cast, it’s pretty cool of the three-time Emmy winner to demand the same deal as his fellow headliners. Can you imagine how much more complicated things would be if he held out for– oh wait:
Sources said Parsons’ team has been aggressive in pushing for a higher salary given his high profile in pop culture and track record as a three-time Emmy winner who is up for a fourth trophy at the Aug. 25 Emmy ceremony.
So there you have it. Both sides want to get a deal done by the end of the weekend, but there are still plenty of moving parts.
As it stands, The Big Bang Theory has already missed five production days due to the cast’s holdout, likely costing CBS at least one episode of the show’s eighth season. Sources told Littleton, however, that those production days can be made up down the road to avoid a shorter season.
If there is a season at all!
