For many, “Modern Family” brought a breath of fresh air to the time-tested family sitcom formula. But right from the start, one creator revealed that the show’s premise is not only unoriginal, but surprisingly familiar.
On July 23, 2010, Martin Alexander filed a lawsuit against the creators of “Modern Family”, claiming that they copied the premise of his own copyrighted sitcom concept, “Loony Ben” . After presenting his idea to various networks and agencies over a period of time, Alexander believed his work was used to create what would eventually become the “Modern Family”. Such similarities noted by Alexander include the focus on unique family units, heterosexual relationships between a white man and a Latino woman, same-sex relationships between people Men of different sizes and white parents have an Asian daughter. Even the cast is very similar, with Ben Stiller expected to play a similar role to Ty Burrell’s Phil Dunphy, and Sofia Vergara herself expected to be cast in the series film as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett.
Alexander managed to earn $30,000 for each violation, another $150,000 for all willful infringements, and 50% of the exclusive rights to the series. The case would be dismissed a year later by a judge in New York, who found the similarities were not important enough to justify the case. It’s certainly a close call for TV comedy, but it’s not the only time the show has run into legal trouble.
The legitimacy of the copyright dispute against the “Modern Family” may have been contested, but another legal battle of an unquestionable nature almost ensued. In July 2012, the show’s adult cast filed a lawsuit against 20th Century Fox to cancel their contracts.
The move follows the show’s third season as the plaintiffs, including Ty Burrell, Julie Bowen, Eric Stonestreet, Sofia Vergara and Jesse Tyler Ferguson, seek to renegotiate their contracts for better pay. . Although the higher-paid Ed O’Neil was not initially part of the lawsuit, the actor eventually united with his co-stars. While the cast’s contract remains good through Season 7, the break between Seasons 3 and 4 is a common time for actors to negotiate for better deals. Because of this, the plan to read the board for season 4 has been cancelled.
For the first three seasons, most adult actors were paid $65,000 per episode, while O’Neill made around $100,000. The network initially offered $150,000 for Season 4, which would grow to $325,000 if it made it to Season Nine. However, the cast, who were more aware of the film’s growing popularity, rejected the proposal, even looking to double down on new offers.
Fortunately, it won’t take long to sort things out. Just days after the dispute began, the actors’ salaries were raised to $350,000 through the end of Season 8 and they themselves added another year to their contracts.
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ABC/YouTube Channel Mikael/20. 4:23 pm EST May 2023
For many, “Modern Family” brought a breath of fresh air to the time-tested family sitcom formula. But right from the start, one creator revealed that the show’s premise is not only unoriginal, but surprisingly familiar.
On July 23, 2010, Martin Alexander filed a lawsuit against the creators of “Modern Family”, claiming that they copied the premise of his own copyrighted sitcom concept, “Loony Ben” . After presenting his idea to various networks and agencies over a period of time, Alexander believed his work was used to create what would eventually become the “Modern Family”. Such similarities noted by Alexander include the focus on unique family units, heterosexual relationships between a white man and a Latino woman, same-sex relationships between people Men of different sizes and white parents have an Asian daughter. Even the cast is very similar, with Ben Stiller expected to play a similar role to Ty Burrell’s Phil Dunphy, and Sofia Vergara herself expected to be cast in the series film as Gloria Delgado-Pritchett.
Alexander managed to earn $30,000 for each violation, another $150,000 for all willful infringements, and 50% of the exclusive rights to the series. The case would be dismissed a year later by a judge in New York, who found the similarities were not important enough to justify the case. It’s certainly a close call for TV comedy, but it’s not the only time the show has run into legal trouble.
It’s not just outsiders trying to sue the show
ABC/YouTube
The legitimacy of the copyright dispute against the “Modern Family” may have been contested, but another legal battle of an unquestionable nature almost ensued. In July 2012, the show’s adult cast filed a lawsuit against 20th Century Fox to cancel their contracts.
The move follows the show’s third season as the plaintiffs, including Ty Burrell, Julie Bowen, Eric Stonestreet, Sofia Vergara and Jesse Tyler Ferguson, seek to renegotiate their contracts for better pay. . Although the higher-paid Ed O’Neil was not initially part of the lawsuit, the actor eventually united with his co-stars. While the cast’s contract remains good through Season 7, the break between Seasons 3 and 4 is a common time for actors to negotiate for better deals. Because of this, the plan to read the board for season 4 has been cancelled.
For the first three seasons, most adult actors were paid $65,000 per episode, while O’Neill made around $100,000. The network initially offered $150,000 for Season 4, which would grow to $325,000 if it made it to Season Nine. However, the cast, who were more aware of the film’s growing popularity, rejected the proposal, even looking to double down on new offers.
Fortunately, it won’t take long to sort things out. Just days after the dispute began, the actors’ salaries were raised to $350,000 through the end of Season 8 and they themselves added another year to their contracts.
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