James Gandolfini once dished out $33,000 to each of his co-stars on HBO’s hit show, The Sopranos, to end a contract dispute between the cast and the network, according to James Andrew Miller’s new book, Tinderbox: HBO’s Ruthless Pursuit of New Frontiers.
The book explains that the legendary actor was paid $5 million per season until season 3, when his earnings were doubled to $10 million. Gandolfini later decided that he was worth more to the network and requested $13 million per season. This time, however, HBO lamented.
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The dispute between Gandolfini and HBO would have caused production on The Sopranos to halt and the cast to be temporarily unemployed. This is when Gandolfini decided to write out $33,000 checks for each of his co-stars.
“As good of an actor as he was, he was a better guy,” co-star Steve Schirripa told a New York City radio station in 2013 after Gandolfini’s death. “A generous guy. The guy gave us $33,000 each—16 people. In Season 4 he called every one of the regular castmembers and gave us a check. He said, ‘Thanks for sticking by me.’ It’s like buying 16 people a car.”
“Jim was a brilliant actor but a complicated guy to deal with,” Mike Lombardo, HBO’s former president of programming said in Tinderbox.
[Via]