The Simpsons' Future at Risk in Midst of Salary Standoff Between Studio and Cast

It looks like 20th Century Fox Television might be about to go with the nuclear option when it comes to a salary dispute with cast members of its long-running animated staple The Simpsons — and we’re not talking about a situation involving Mr. Burns’ dubious Springfield Power Plant.

Instead, the studio is considering pulling the plug on the longest-running scripted show on television at the end of its current 23rd season due to a contract battle with the show’s six main actors, The Daily Beast is reporting. “We believe this brilliant series can and should continue, but we cannot produce future seasons under its current financial model,” the company said in a statement.

Reportedly, the actors in question — Dan Castellaneta (Homer), Julie Kavner (Marge), Nancy Cartwright (Bart), Yeardley Smith (Lisa), Hank Azaria, and Harry Shearer — proposed taking a 30 percent pay cut in exchange for a small share of the show’s back-end earnings, while 20th Century Fox is insistent on a 45 percent salary reduction.

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