Case Study For Fixed-Fee Cast Payment Model

[hewontgo]

'The Pitt' Is Case Study For Fixed-Fee Cast Payment Model Amid TV Industry Push To Cap Talent Costs https://t.co/X30kLlSdXM
- Deadline (@DEADLINE) November 9, 2024
The series’ unusual casting process that resembled hiring practices at a general company, where people apply for a position at a fixed salary denoted in the job listing

Comments

[frankthesheep]

This is interesting, and I'm curious to see how it develops. The TV landscape is changing-all the money was pumped into making programmes to draw people to online streaming platforms, and they reached diminishing returns very quickly. So many people in the industry were out of work last year and this year due to production slow down because money wasn't coming in. Productions can't afford to go overbudget to secure to some guest star. So, favoured nations seems to be the fair way to go

[phililen3]

But what if the show is some huge runaway success? It's fucked up for the talent, writers included, to not get a pay bump that reflects that. I get the issue with MASSIVE casts like GOT, but if it's a small cast then the studios or whoever should be able to manage the pay raise.

[squirrels_oh_no]

As I wrote below, I think this isn't about cost-cutting - it's about the redirection of profits into shareholder pockets and not for casts/crew/creatives.

[squirrels_oh_no]

I think a lot of the streamers *cough* HBO/Zaslav *cough* are betting on the premise that if actors want to keep working, they will take this deal, and for a lot of actors, TV shows are where they make their money. Even if they're not a star on one at the present, being a featured guest on one episode or a small arc is where the primary money they make for the year comes from. It diminishes the power of the actors to negotiate based on what they bring to the table, but at the same time, many jobs - particularly nonprofit ones - are moving to this model to eliminate "systemic bias". It's just weird. I get it for nonprofits, but not so much for inherently capitalistic film and TV production. At the end of the day, some roles require more effort/work, and just forcing everyone to be on set even when they're not working to even out the pay structure is just weird.

If they want to work, they will take it, even if they're not gonna get raises or are making less than they used to. Like many things in late-stage capitalism, it is less about

[hewontgo]

I like this article,
This was such an interesting read.

[anterrabre]

So it begins. This is what happens when you let bean counters make decisions in creative affairs. Nothing good will come from this.

[psychoblood]

I'm a bean counter by training and even I've think this is dumb/unfair.

I understand trying to manage costs, but this is way too corporate. I think it theoretically makes sense for anthologies where turnover will be high/cast retention is not an issue, but for traditional series???!?? That's just unfair to bank on an actor accepting shit pay when acting is such a different industry. It's not like when you slog your way through being underpaid at a Big 4 accounting firm with a practical guarantee of a good exit opportunity because of the weight a Big 4 name carries in your resume, as a bean counter. It's a shitty practice in audit that shouldn't be transferred to anything else.