Mo’Nique Sues Paramount, CBS For Unpaid ‘The Parkers’ Royalties
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Mo’Nique is suing CBS TV Studios and Paramount Pictures for unpaid royalties linked to The Parkers.
According to Associated Press, the comedian filed a breach of contract lawsuit on Wednesday (April 12), alleging that the defendants “artificially depressed the show’s profitability to retain millions that would otherwise be contractually due” to Mo’Nique’s production company.
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“While the Series has proven to be a major financial success for its producers and distributors, the series’ talent [has] not been permitted to share in the fruits of that success,” the suit reads.
“Plaintiff is further informed and believes and thereupon alleges that the Series’ writers and creators performed a forensic audit that this forensic audit of the Series’ books and records strongly suggested that Defendants have inequitably structured the Series’ finances to artificially depress its profitability and retain millions that would otherwise be contractually due and owing to Plaintiff.”
The complaint also details how the actress discovered the breach in the contract after she noticed other creatives who worked on the show also filed a lawsuit.
“Plaintiff only recently discovered the breaches and/or concealment of material facts described herein when it learned of details of the publicly-filed lawsuit by the writers and creators of the Series,” the suit continues. “Before that, they had been lulled through the words and actions of the Defendants into believing that all moneys were properly paid.”
Mo took to Instagram to speak about her lawsuit, claiming her documents would shed some light on the unfair financial practices.
“Today we filed a lawsuit to make sure that we are fairly paid money that we are owed for The Parkers. Actors rely on the good faith of Hollywood companies to honor their profit participation agreements,” she typed. “The Parkers was a huge success and continues to be a source of revenue through syndication and streaming channels.
“To further make my point, the Executive Producers of The Parkers took legal action for the same concerns that I have, and they’ve already settled. Unfortunately, all too often, talent gets kept in the dark. We’re looking forward to shedding some light on the subject! I LOVE US 4REAL!!”
The Parkers was a spinoff of the sitcom Moesha and ran for five seasons from 1999 to 2004 on UPN, a precursor to The CW.
The show, which sees the acclaimed multihyphenate starring on as Nikki Parker, has been available via reruns on BET and available on Netflix since 2020.
Mo’Nique’s suit doesn’t specify how much money she’s seeking for damages.
