COPYCENSE

“The next mob war on “The Sopranos” may happen off camera.

“When HBO announced last August that the television show would finish with a 20-episode run that would be broken up over the next two years, it was careful to characterize it as a single season. But the concept of a “season,” once quite formal, continues to get fuzzier as TV changes, and HBO’s own idiosyncratic scheduling practices are part of the trend.

“Now, as Time Warner Inc.’s HBO is wrapping production on the first 12 episodes, key supporting-cast members are arguing that the additional eight shows constitute a new season, and they want their contracts renegotiated. James Gandolfini, who stars as Tony Soprano, has recently signed a new deal taking him through next year’s final eight shows that pays him in the neighborhood of $1 million an episode.

Joe Flint. ‘Sopranos’ Actors Take Another Whack At Their Contracts. WSJ Onliine. March 15, 2006.

See also:

The New York Times. Dark Days for Tony Soprano (Editorial). March 19, 2006.

CNNMoney.com ‘Sopranos’ Want An Offer They Can’t Refuse. March 15, 2006.

Bill Carter. Mob Boss Takes Hit; Housewife Implicated. The New York Times. March 15, 2006.

CopyCense™: K. Matthew Dames on the intersection of business, law and technology. A business venture of Seso Digital LLC.