Julianna Margulies on Nixed Good Fight Arc: CBS ‘Wouldn’t Pay’ My Rate
The Good Wife star Julianna Margulies almost made a visit to the CBS All Access spinoff The Good Fight this season — but the price wasn’t right.
The actress was “really excited about the idea” of reprising her Emmy-winning role of Alicia Florrick, “but CBS refused to pay my [ask],” Margulies told our sister site Deadline while promoting her Nat Geo miniseries The Hot Zone at The Contenders Emmys event on Sunday.
“The showrunners had found a nice away to reintroduce my character, a story that was to span three episodes” during the current third season, Margulies shared. Alas, when she asked for her regular fee — and no more, she noted to Deadline — Margulies was offered a Good Fight guest-star rate.
“I’m not a guest star; I started the whole thing with The Good Wife,” Margulies explained. “I wanted to be paid my worth and stand up for equal pay. If Jon Hamm came back for a Mad Men spinoff or Kiefer Sutherland wanted to do a 24 spinoff, they would be paid.”
At the Television Critics Association press tour in February, Good Wife and Good Fight co-creator Robert King revealed under what circumstances Alicia might have appeared. “We thought maybe about making a big episode where she would be at the resistance, [and] Diane and her face each other,” King told reporters. “But that would be the end of the story. It felt like an asterisk.”
Are you disappointed that Alicia won’t be making a cameo on The Good Fight? Hit the comments with your thoughts.
Good for her! #knowyourworth
She has the right to demand her worth in salary, and they have the right to not offer more. She is not necessary on the show, far from it actually. We have moved on from the Florricks. She would not bring in the ratings ( as she didn’t on the mothership). This way she gets to keep her pride and the show avoids the drama on set and saves some money for other guest stars. Everyone’s happy.
Considering they name drop Alicia 1-2 times the first and second season, we really haven’t moved on from her.
As she didn’t on the mothership? okay……
Totally fair of her to ask and then reject based on their answer. Also totally fair for CBS not to blow an entire episode’s budget just for 1 actress.
Agree to both statements
Absolutely!
Yeah, it doesn’t have to be anybody’s fault; just a simple fact of the business.
Exactly! It’s a simple law of economics. If supply and demand can’t meet at a price that satisfies both parties, then there is no deal. Happens all the time and it’s nobody’s fault.
but totally cool to blow the entire budget on one actor right? because as much as i despise her, her point stands. they wouldn’t dare pay jon hamm or keifer s or jim parsons a “guest star’ rate.
.. or – maybe Archie Panjabi was on set at the time.
Julianna, please realize YOU ARE a guest star on that other show!! You are not main cast, you are not side cast, you are a guest for 3 episodes only, and that is absolutely obvious for everyone.
Nope this show wouldn’t exist if it wasn’t for her show. She would have been reprising a role. She deserved to paid her rate. CBS screwed up on this one.
This is CBS All access not CBS. She’s owed nothing. She has a right to refuse the job if she doesn’t find the compensation sufficient. No deal, no problem.
She should be paid on the new show at least what she was paid on the old one. The Alicia rate.
She’s no longer the lead. Do you think Chandra Wilson earns the same rate on Station 19 as she does on Grey’s Anatomy?
She does.
Yeah, but that is because it is a crafty way to give a star a “raise,” only not technically. She isn’t getting money from 1 show (or budget), but from a second show (aka different budget). Just like Parsons on Young Sheldon. His producer and voice over acting get him a big raise, one that doesn’t count towards BBT, thus keeping the profits in a good place.
No she isn’t a guest star. She started the mother show and they will promote her appearance to get viewers tuned in and subscribed to CBS All Access, so no, she isn’t a guest star, she would’ve been billed as a special guest star and be used to promote their platform, so yes she should get her Good Wife rate.
And they did the math and decided she wouldn’t bring in enough new viewers to justify the rate. So it’s a no go for everyone
You know they did some math or you’re making that up?
People think CBS skims just because it’s access. Yea if they operate like you think, they’ll never compete with Netflix.
Shame on CBS.
Why “Shame on CBS”? She asked: they said, “No.” That’s the business side of show business. (And for what it’s worth, I think she was right to ask for what she wanted, and right to refuse the salary they offered.)
Boy, is she tiresome. The salary has nothing to do with gender and everything to do with the fact that the show is on CBS All Access, not CBS proper. If Keifer Sutherland returned to the role of Jack Bauer, it would be on Fox and they could support his salary.
Add to the fact that she couldn’t get along well enough with her colleague that they actually had to film her scenes separately and splice them together. She’s a PITA. Fade away into obscurity.
But she is right. IF Jon Hamm or Keifer returned for a cameo on their sequel to their original show, but on a streaming service. They would have paid more than the guest star rate. It’s true that the show might not have the funds, but given the press and buzz a three episode arc would have given the show with Juliana apart of it… she is worth it. CBS screwed up.
Nope. If a 24 sequel were on a minor streaming service, then Kiefer would not get the same salary he got when it was a big hit on Fox broadcasting.
She has a tremendous ego. Good riddance.
Yes they would. She wasn’t asking for the same salary. She asking for more than was the guest star rate because she’s not the typical guest star. She is the original star of the original show. So yea, Keifer or Jon Hamm would have been given more than the guest star rate because it is known how much of star they were on the original. She was the star. She deserves more than a guest star rate. Especially if it was a three episode arc. Yes there there should be a line not to cross in terms of payment. But she isn’t the average guest star.
Clearly states she asked for usual rate. Which she 100% does not deserve to be making as a guest star on a streaming services spinoff. If she ever deflated that infamous ego enough to check back in with Earthlings maybe she would understand her worth to this new series and could of sucked it up and did it for the fans but alas
her ask =/= her Good Wife salary at the time of the final season. The ask is a set “fee” determined by her and her agent per episode. Then if the show does well and contracts are renegotiated each season, then the ask is raised.
Some of y’all need to realize this.
it’s “could have,” or “could’ve,” not “could OF.” There is no such phrase as “could of.”
As far as what you claim she 100% “does not deserve,” that’s pretty weird. Like, who are you to decide what Julianna Margulies does or does not deserve?
But the question becomes is her rate more than the actual stars of this show?? Also…when they decided to do this show, wasn’t she really not interested in reprising her role. It feels like she’s only showing an interest now because there is more buzz about this show then there was in the final fee seasons of the good wife.
Part of the reason she wasn’t originally part of The Good Fight is because the Kings wanted to go in a new direction. Plus, the Kings decided to end Good Wife when they did. Juliana even went up to the Kings at the red carpet event for their replacement show “Braindead” and basically chewed them out for cancelling the show without giving a decent heads up because it was leaving her with no pilot or show to move on to the next year. I feel that also played into part of why she was never considered til now for a spot on The Good Fight.
Sorry, she’s right. Do you think Star Trek Discovery is on a show string budget? CBS All Access should pay her for the 3 episode ARC.
Stark Trek is hemorraging money and a constant problem for the whole platform. The need to save where they can. They already said that Anson Mount won’t return past this season. They are trying to run a business, they can’t give her what she demands. She didn’t accept the offer, which was withing her right, so it’s not happening and the show must go on. End of story.
“Start Trek is hemorraging money and a constant problem for the whole platform. The need to save where they can. They already said that Anson Mount won’t return past this season”
1. No, it isn’t. The payments from Netflix and other platforms for the overseas rights more or less covers the cost of the show. They also have subscription fees and ad revenue for the Tier 2 service. Discovery is fine and was just renewed for Season 3. They wouldn’t do that just to spite you, “Love.”
“The need to save where they can. They already said that Anson Mount won’t return past this season””
2. Anson Mount is not leaving because they “need to save,” he’s leaving because he was always going to be leaving, just like Jason Isaacs left after Season 1. If you were an actual Trek fan, you’d know that Pike has canonical responsibilities elsewhere in the broader narrative and must soon be on his way. That being said, he’s been hugely popular and well-received this season, so I wouldn’t be entirely shocked if they figured out a way to fold him into the upcoming Section 31 series. But they wouldn’t be doing that because there was a risk of “losing” him. He’s not being “lost.” He was contracted to play Pike for one season. That was always the plan. You Discovery Doomsayers are an odd bunch.
Star Trek has been a smash for All Access and it’s driving the majority of subscriptions. So successful that two spin-offs are coming. That international Netflix money is also fantastic.
I’ve been over here in England the last 2 weeks and watched the last 2 Discovery Episodes on Netflix here.. It is interesting what I’ve been able to get… On Netflix, it’s what they offer to it’s customers here.. On Amazon Prime, it’s a subset of what they have in the USA.. On Hulu, it was nothing…
I was blocked from anything from my XFINITY subscriptions including watching on my DVR… On the other hand, my NHL and MLB subscriptions worked fine …. Didn’t see a second from the last 2 weekends of March Madness…
Have you ever considered anger management classes, it might be helpful.
+200 TVLine Power User points (no cash value) . “Love” is spouting nonsense.
This isn’t remotely true. It’s CBS Studios’s biggest show after NCIS and NCIS: LA. That’s why they have renewed it for 3rd season with a budget increase, they have 1 spinoff that’s also renewed for a third run of episodes in 2020, 2 off-shoots in production, 2 more announced in-development and 1 more that’ll be announced next Friday. It prints them money, and lots of it.
Here’s my issue with her comment. Instead of providing an actual example, she provide hypothetical examples. Hypothetical examples do NOT demonstrate a precedence that men in this situation would have been paid their full rate. If she can provide real examples in which male actors were paid their full rate to guest star on a spinoff, sure. But hypothetical examples are useless.
They are going to use her appearance to promote the show and the platform and she’d be billed as a special guest star.
CBS isn’t some poor upstart corporation and they can afford to pay her for a 3 episode stint to promote their streaming platform.
You think ALL Access is broke? Lol
The manipulative slant to her statement is what irritates: she could have used women as examples, but instead, surprise surprise, she chose men. Pfft.
As much as I love The Good Fight, I do sometimes miss the connections to the mother show. Why aren’t we seeing cases that involve David Lee and his clients, especially as Lucca is taking over Family Law at RBL? Where’s Eli (there was an offhand comment about him running campaigns in the middle east or somthing last week? That’s weird)? It seems the Florricks are still involved in the Chicago legal and political scene. What’s going on with them? I get the logistics – the actors aren’t available/affordable and the producers want to focus on this new story. But compare this to when Alicia & Cary started their own firm. They were constantly running into Lockhart Gardner. Diane never sees her old colleagues (as a matter of fact, when is the last time we’ve seen Diane in court?). Like I said, I’m loving the spinoff, but part of me wishes that when Diane was ousted from her firm, she would’ve been forced out of the Chicago legal scene and had to take a job in New York or something. That would make these absences feel more natural. I guess I’m used to something like the Arrowverse where you know it’s a shared universe because characters keep popping up in other shows. It was nice to see Matan Brody the a couple of weeks ago, though. But other than that, we’re getting all new ASAs and mostly new judges… the change in guest/recurring cast coupled with the shift in tone makes it feel not very connected to the original series. Again, I love the show. It’s probably my favorite on TV right now. But I do wish we had more connections to the mother show.
I agree, I like how with the Arrowverse , all 4 shows are separate but you know they can still and frequently do intersect.
Pay the lady what she’s worth! You will not be disappointed. She’s an established character. And to watch her performance is gold! What you pay you will gain in loyalty of fan’s!
Her arrogance is so off putting. I will never forget how she treated Archie on The Good Wife and the fact she lied to everyone saying she was not in town to do the last episode, when Archie, in fact, in New York City ready to do the episode. She made them use a stand in because she could not stand Archie for some reason. What an unprofessional loser. Stay far, far away from The Good Fight.
I’m in agreement with you!!!
Given that she lied then, it makes me wonder why a lot of the commenters here are immediately taking her version of this as gospel.
I can both agree she should get paid her rate AND think she’s exhausting and unprofessional.
This.
I don’t understand fans who are so sure they know the real story with celebs and take sides. Everything has two sides, even when your favorite celeb is involved.
It’s one thing to idolize them, but to actively trash another person that you don’t know in the slightest? Just because you like their acting doesn’t make them a saint.
She should get paid equivalent to what she made or good wife. I’d love her to do it, but I think she should hold firm on the salary.
The should have Archie Punjabi on and pay her what Julianne was asking. That would really piss her off!
Doesn’t all this really depend on how involved she is in the storyline? When she was on the mother show it revolved around her character; now it probably wouldn’t. She is a guest star and the value of that payment should be based on her worth to the storyline while not forgetting the value of the character she is reprising. She definitely shouldn’t learn scale or the low end of a guest star rate, but she no longer is the star of the show she is appearing in.
Look CBS left the show on it schedule a lot longer than it should have because of the awards factors and The prestige it brought the network. It is a streaming series now with a budget nowhere close to the mother show. Like it or not folks we’re all here to make a buck.
She likely would be pivotal to the 3 episode arc and she be paid her normal salary.
I don’t love Marguiles attitude in general but this seems like a fair request on her behalf. Having said that, I’m glad they couldn’t afford her. ‘The Good Wife’ ran its course, and tbh ran way beyond where it should have. I don’t want to see Alicia Florrick again. We barely have enough time to spend with the characters I love on the far superior ‘The Good Fight’ as is.
I hope the door isn’t closed and CBS reconsiders.
Good for her, but I’m not sure Kiefer Sutherland would get paid as much today. 24 isn’t the ratings juggernaut it was in the aughts.
Can they bring in archie panjabi on instead then?
The more I hear about or from her, the less I want to. She seems like an insufferable woman.
This. Dying at her trying to turn her insufferable ego into some sort of #metoo moment. Not buying it.
Yep. I loved her on ER but I was really turned off by her on The Good Wife. She was easily the worst actor on the show.
You may not like her as a person (although you probably don’t know her personally and neither do I). But to call her the worst actor on the show is just petty and absolutely false. She led that show and it was full of brilliant actors aside from herself and she was one of the best and her Emmy wins for the role are evidence of that too. And for me personally she was the reason I got hooked on the show and looked forward to it each week.
Bull. The whole premise of the show changed because her and Chris Noth’s chemistry and charisma free performances couldn’t carry it. The show was supposed to be at least 75% about her and Peter-and that quickly became 25% or less of it because the showrunners realized they were boring, and everyone loved the law firm and the characters of Diane, Will, Carey, etc. much more.
Well that is your opinion. The show was The Good WIFE, not The Good ENSEMBLE. The ensemble was indeed great and I enjoyed them all, but for me her character was one of the biggest draws. I tuned in for her each week and enjoyed watching her story and her evolution. I thought her performance as an actor on the show was amazing and like her or not, I think she is one of the best actresses out there. Seven years is a very good run for a TV show and she definitely carried it well in my opinion.
With her ER money alone, she is already one of the wealthiest people to ever do tv. This is streaming tv not real tv but she did make the show, she deserves to be paid a few bucks more than Christine Baranskis at a minimum if not a whole lot more.
She doesn’t deserve a cent more than Baranski. Just compare Baranski’s credtis on IMdB to Margulies’ and you get the idea which actress is really worth the money.
Despite that Margulies just had luck to get the role in the first place. From ER to The Good Wife. She isn’t that versatile. She’s no Viola Davis filming movies while on TV show hiatus. It’s not like The Good Wife couldn’t have be successful without her. Ashley Judd and Helen Hunt turned down the part. I saw Judd in the recent Berlin Station series, she would have nailed the Alicia role. So Margulies owes them but does she?
“I’m not a guest star; I started the whole thing with The Good Wife,”
No she did not. She didn’t create the show, she didn’t write or direct the pilot. This is an ignorant attitude towards the crew and cast who worked WITH her and not FOR her!
Whoever wrote and created the show started the show. Yes, her character is important,but it’s obviously not critical for the new show. I would have LOVED to have seen Alicia and Diane face off after the infamous slap at the end of the Good Wife…or have seen what really happened with Jason Crouse…but it doesn’t seem destined to be.
Many actors are not as versatile as Baranski. But I disagree with your thought about TGW. No one knows if it would have taken off if she were not cast as Alicia. Maybe it would have, but maybe not. To not give her credit for it is being petty. Are you sure you do not have this attitude because of the whole thing with Archie Panjabi? I don’t know why people have a problem with it. It’s not like it’s the first time actors have not gotten along. To put it all on her just because she was the producer, does not mean Archie didn’t play a role in the whole “fight”. But none of this has to do with her asking for her pay. Is she supposed to take less than what she normally asks for? Not many do that you know.
But I think she does deserve it. She led the show for seven years and won many awards for the role and it was one of the most critically acclaimed shows ever. Without The Good Wife, there would be no The Good Fight. The Good Wife would not have been the same show without her as the lead. No one knows if it would have been the same with a different actress. She would be no ordinary guest star for The Good Fight. To discount her value to the show is petty.
We live Julianna. CBS are really pretty dumb about this issue. Pay her whatever she wants. She’s worth it and everyone on the Good Fight.
Good thing you don’t run a tv network.
Nor you.
They never wanted her from the get go. Low- balling the pay offer was a way of saying thanks but no thanks. Nothing to do with worth, male vs. female pay, guest star or anything else.
I was sure Alicia would play an important part in The Good Fight. It is not the same without her.
In fact, The Good Fight is not as enjoyable as The Good Wife.
Everything that was ever said or printed on the project before it was materialized clearly stated that she would not be involved for the time being, which is consisted with the Good Wife finale.
Missed opportunity, for sure! Alicia, Diane, and Luca seeing each other again would be TV gold! Even during Good Wife seasons 6 and 7 (the bad seasons), the scenes between Diane and Alicia were amazingly good. Not every GW watcher moved to the new show. This would have gotten some of them to watch these 3 episodes at least, and possibly stay longer. Like I said, missed opportunity.
I totally agree with her. Good for her. But I do miss Alicia! An appearance wouldn’t been epic.
Says the actress who turned down $1 MILLION per episode to remain on ER…
I was thinking this exactly. She famously turned down a 27 million dolor contract for ER (which is more than almost anyone makes now, 2 decades later). If she doesn’t want to do something, she’s not going to; and more to the point she doesn’t have to negotiate her fee b/c she has ER money and doesn’t need to guest on a show if she doesn’t want too.
Alan Cumming just said the exact same thing at an event I was at in DC a few weeks ago. They would only pay him slightly above the highest guest star rate, but she IS The Good Wife!
The Good wife ended. This is another show. If they want to be in it they must accept a reduced pay. If not that is fine anhyway.
She was asking for a fee based on her worth. No one was asking for a full salary to what one of the stars were making. All she said was that she was worth more than what they would pay a ordinary guest star. Given she was the original star of the mothership, which spawned this show. She deserved more than what a typical guest star would have gotten. Especially since they would has used her for PR, buzz and to get people to subscribe to show. I understand money is tighter but she’s not the typical guest star. She deserves her worth. OF course there should be a limit, so it still might not have worked out but she deserves more than the regular guest star rate.
I think you are greatly overstating her value as a celebrity draw. I would much rather see Alan Cumming again – and he is worth 10x her salary.
Actually Alicia vs Diane would bring closure to the series finale closing moments of the Good Wife. And she’s the original star of the Good Wife so yes they would have used her to try to draw people in to the subscription series. Not everyone watches or would watch because of her, but she has a value and she’s not a ordinary guest star. Of course there should be a line for any payment, but still she should command more than the average guest star.