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After 23 seasons, could it be over for Homer?

After over two decades, FOX's legendary animated series The Simpsons could be coming to an end because of...contract negotiations? The Daily Beast reports that FOX wants the voice cast to take extreme pay cuts.

 

Currently, the studio and the six principal voice actors are at an "impasse" over salaries and on Monday the executives asked/demanded that the cast take a 45% pay cut or else the show will end. The cast, in return, asked for only a 30% pay cut and a slice of the show's huge back-end profits.

 

"FOX is taking the position that unless they can cut the production costs really drastically, they'll pull the plug on new shows," a Simpsons insider told The Daily Beast. "The show has made billions in profits over the years and will continue to do so as far as the eye can see down the road. The actors are willing to take a pay cut of roughly a third, but that's not good enough for Fox."

 

Keep this in mind: the actors currently each make around $8 million dollars a year.

 

20th Century Fox Television talked to The Hollywood Reporter this morning and said: "23 seasons in, The Simpsons is as creatively vibrant as ever and beloved by millions around the world. We believe this brilliant series can and should continue, but we cannot produce future seasons under its current financial model. We are hopeful that we can reach an agreement with the voice cast that allows The Simpsons to go on entertaining audiences with original episodes for many years to come."

 

- FOX

NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!

i really hope that The Simpsons will continuie becuse i love it

I don't think so.Most FOX shows suck Simpsons is the only good show on there.So they might end one of the sucky shows

I don't think so.Most FOX shows suck Simpsons is the only good show on there.So they might end one of the sucky shows

 

But what about family guy.

 

 

 

I don't mind to be honest, 23 Seasons!? I kinda want the series to end...It's been around for a LONG time.

 

But for family guy, their contract ends next year. so we can see family guy ending next year ;a;

D:

I doubt family guy will end. This is gonna suck that the simpsons will be gone

Hmm... So considering everything the Simpsons has been through... A mere argument over cast members' salaries may bring its cancellation?

 

LMAO

All good things must come to an end.

Oh yeah, the Simpsons are in HUGE danger of being cancelled.

After all, Fox can't afford to pay 24 million dollars a year to keep the most obscenely profitable show they air going.

Seriously, the fact that the actors are even allowing a 30% cut shows they don't know how much they're worth. I mean, if the Futuramma cast can be brought back by sheer fan demand, I'm sure the Simpson's can.

Fox is a whore to their own viewers. Shows that came near cancellation were brought back to life just because of how much the audience whined about it. The Simpsons still has a large fanbase. I doubt the show will be cancelled.

Simpsons Cast Agrees to Pay Cuts

According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Simpsons' voice cast has agreed to a pay cut.

 

No, it won't be as severe as the 45% cut that FOX originally wanted last Monday, which would have dropped the $400,000 they get per episode to around $250,000. So this is somewhat of a small victory for the cast. But on the flip side of this is the fact that they still will not get any back-end percentage of the Simpsons franchise profits like they had originally countered with.

 

The cast includes: Dan Castellaneta (Homer, Grampa Simpson, Krusty the Clown, and others), Julie Kavner (Marge and others), Nancy Cartwright (Bart and others), Yeardley Smith (Lisa), Hank Azaria (Moe, Chief Wiggum and Apu), and Harry Shearer (Mr. Burns, Principal Skinner, and Ned Flanders, more…). Their decision to take a cut in salary follows the series producers themselves agreeing to a pay cut earlier this morning. But the big difference there is that the several of the producers, in fact, have the kind of "back end" deal that the cast wanted.

 

In fact, just this morning Harry Shearer released a statement where he said "I'm willing to let them cut my salary not just 45% but more than 70% – down to half of what they said they would be willing to pay us. All I would ask in return is that I be allowed a small share of the eventual profits."

 

On a final note here, there was some talk that this, being probably the last salary negotiation the cast would ever go through, would be for one more, 24th and final season. As of this time there has been no update as to whether that is true or whether these cuts will allow the series to continue on past Season 24.

 

- FOX

Stupid, sexy Flanders...

This is a really lame way for the Simpsons to go.

Anyways, I wonder if the Simpsons will have a Family Guy-like cycled of resurrections and cancellations?

i luv the simpsons! i don't want it to end!!

It's not ending, the simspons as been renewed thru season 25

It's gonna have to end eventually . Plus, like most shows (Family Guy, Spongebob, and Pokemon would be great examples), the newer episodes usually tend to disappoint fans compared to the older ones. I can't even remember the last time I looked forward to watching something on TV, LOL.