Dave Erickson, the co-creator of “Fear the Walking Dead,” sued AMC Networks on Wednesday, alleging he has been denied his rightful share of the show’s profits.
He becomes the seventh “Walking Dead” producer in the last dozen years to accuse the cable network of using Hollywood accounting gimmicks to avoid making payments to profit participants.
Erickson co-created the spinoff show in 2015 with Robert Kirkman, the creator of the comic series. He was also the showrunner for three years.
Erickson took the job knowing that, for a successful showrunner, “one hit series can create a lifetime annuity,” the lawsuit states. But Erickson has received nothing in profits, the suit alleges, while others have received as much as $67 million. According to the complaint, the network claims that the show is $185 million in deficit — meaning he will almost certainly never see a dime in profit payments.
Like the other lawsuits filed over “The Walking Dead,” the lawsuit alleges that AMC has abused its role as both producer and exhibitor of the show to claim phony charges against the show’s bottom line and avoid paying out profits.
“When a vertically integrated conglomerate like AMC both produces a series and licenses it to its various affiliates, domestic and international, cable and streaming, concerns about improper self-dealing abound,” the lawsuit states. “Erickson brings this action to rectify AMC’s egregious misconduct and to obtain the tens of millions of dollars in profits he is rightfully owed.”
Frank Darabont, the creator of “The Walking Dead,” and his agency, CAA, filed a similar claim in 2013, which was ultimately settled for $200 million eight years later. Kirkman and four other producers filed suit in 2017. That complaint was rejected by a state judge in Los Angeles, but the producers refiled in federal court, where the case remains pending.
AMC denied Erickson’s allegations in a statement.
“This lawsuit, like Kirkman’s years ago, has no merit,” said Orin Snyder, the company’s attorney. “We are confident it will fail, just like the last one. The contracts here were negotiated by the most experienced and sophisticated legal talent in Hollywood, and AMC has fully paid what is owed. This is simply another crass money grab.”
Erickson states that he was working for AMC under an overall deal, which granted him 5% of the “modified adjusted gross receipts” from “Fear the Walking Dead.” The suit alleges that AMC did not actually provide Erickson’s representatives with its MAGR definition until years later, but that they had been assured it would be the same definition as applies to everyone else.
Only later, when they were told the show was nearly $200 million in the red, did they realize it was “the worst possible definition for a hit show in the history of television,” the lawsuit states.