Earlier this year, we told you that MoโNique was suing CBS and Paramount over her popular 90s/early 2000s TV show, The Parkers.
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Now, in a new video posted to Instagram on Wednesday, the Oscar-winning actress and her husband, Sydney Hicks, are getting all the way real about the way she, Parkers costar Countess Vaughn, show writers and creatives were unfairly compensated during the successful show run.
โCountess Vaughn and I did a show called The Parkers. The Parkers has now been on-air for 24 years. And theyโre trying to convince usโthrough our ownership of the showโthat we made absolutely no money,โ MoโNique began.
โAnd thatโs baffling being that when you have a conversation with executive producers and they allude to the fact that the show in its entiretyโfive yearsโwas made for under $70 million. It went out of production in 2004,โ Sydney chimed in. โBut by 2009, we see profit participation statements that show the program made over $700 million. But yet was in a close to a billion, if not a billion dollar deficit.โ
The Almost Christmas actress went on to implore CBS to pay her and Countess the money theyโre owed and referenced Dave Chappelle and his own renegotiation with the network back in 2021.
โWhat weโre asking you CBS: Donโt pay us any more, but donโt pay us any less,โ MoโNique added. Sydney concluded by explaining that the reason why they wanted to go public with making the video and asking for what they deserve was because they saw the numbers the show was pulling. But they questioned what would happen to other shows and creatives who may not be able to access those same numbers and push for whatโs rightfully owed to them.
Moโnique ended the video by asking those fighting for equality to stand with them and for CBS to treat them fairly.
As you already know, when it comes to the comedian and getting whatโs owed to herโshe stands 10 toes down on the side of right and has come out on top before (looking at you, Netflix). Hereโs hoping she and the rest of the talented folks involved in The Parkers get their just dues this time around.
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