‘Walking Dead’ profit lawsuit gets a new chapter – The Hollywood Reporter
Four months after AMC reached a $200 million settlement with Frank Darabont on profit claims for Walking corpses, the dispute has taken a surprising new turn with a new lawsuit filed Thursday in federal court. AMC explicitly requested arbitration with Walking corpses creator Robert Kirkman and other executive producers of the hit zombie show. After years of court appearances, the Kirkman gang responded: “No way!”
According to the latest complaint, AMC is concerned about “most-favoured-nation” clauses in the contracts of executive producers with the right to participate in the profits. It is possible that Darabont’s $200 million payment means that Kirkman, Gale Anne Hurd, David Alpert, Charles Eglee and Glen Mazzara are treated equally, although no individuals have yet pursued such a claim. As their new lawsuit states, “Indeed, Plaintiffs have not even looked at Darabont’s settlement documentation to be sure if they could make such a claim.”
However, the AMC wants it to be resolved – but not in Los Angeles Superior Court, where the parties are currently fighting, but in arbitration. AMC filed a request for arbitration on October 28. When asked for comment by CHEAP, AMC Attorney Scott Edelman said: “We have submitted to arbitration to confirm that the recent settlement in another lawsuit involves profit participation on the Zombie has no impact on the agreements of these profit participants. ”
The Kirkman crew, represented by Sheldon Eisenberg, believe demand is growing because they recently achieved success when a Los Angeles judge allowed them to pursue new legal theories and award damages in their ongoing profits lawsuit (an action similar to the Darabont case in how it questions potential license fee amounts over AMC’s role in both the production and display of the set) story).
But there is a potential problem with the AMC’s need for arbitration.
“There is no word in any of these contracts about arbitration,” the complaint states. “Instead, the Kirkman, Hurd, Alpert, and Eglee contracts stipulate that disputes must be resolved by legal action for monetary damages.”
The plaintiffs say that AMC attempted to unilaterally impose arbitration after signing the agreements, but they believe that is something that should be negotiated. They added that AMC’s years in court on the subject of profit accounting qualify for an exemption.
Kirkman is seeking an injunction banning any referees. AMC’s Edelman replied: “These participants have now gone to court to try to stop arbitration, even though their contract states that the dispute must be adjudicated. Their efforts will fail.”
