THE DISHMASTER

When actors get a hit television series they always want out of their contract. The offers start to pour in, and their egos take over. But because studios have them under five to seven year contracts, they have one of three choices: Politely ask to be released from their contract; cause a media frenzy and get fired by the studio (see Katherine Heigl); or wait it out until the show runs its course. Matthew Morrison might be opting for option two. He recently told The Mirror that he feels “trapped” on the show, and despite “having a really good lawyer” he “cannot get out of it.” He also said the show has caused him to turn down movie roles. I have a few things to say about this. First, getting a hit television show is the holy-fu*king-grail in the entertainment business. If you knew how many shows die each season, you’d be shocked. He should therefore get down on his knees and thank God for his luck. Second, studios and networks are very kind to their actors, and they more often than not allow them to render services on movies, provided it doesn’t interfere with their shooting schedule. And lastly, I sure hope Matthew Morrison is saving his money (see Katherine Heigl again).

When actors become breakout stars of a television series, they inevitably want out of their contract to star in movies. Studios get angry, actors become defiant, and finally, after a predicted media meltdown, the network and studio decide they would rather have to rewrite a story-line than deal with a difficult, unhappy actor. But the actor soon discovers that the movie business brings more fame than money, because offers, no matter how big, are few and far between. Such was the case with Katherine Heigl, who kicked and screamed her way off of Grey’s Anatomy until she was finally released from her contract. And like the many actors before her (see David Caruso) — she wants back in. Shonda Rimes is probably tickled pink.

There’s something suspicious about Ryan Murphy’s recent announcement that he’ll be letting go of his three choice players after Season 3 of Glee. First, all three actors are up for a contract renegotiation, and everyone knows that actors on a hit-show play hard-ball on Season 3 (remember Katherine Heigl’s Grey’s Anatomy debacle?). Second, they are three major stars, and despite Murphy’s proclamation that it’s the right creative choice, there is a huge risk of axing your primary series regulars. Does he seriously think that he can get three more unknown actors to duplicate the current lightning-in-a-bottle success of the show? All signs point to no. Third, what about Mark Salling? Why did he only announce that Lea, Cory, and Chris are leaving and neglect to mention Salling? Is it because Mark is less expensive, and Murphy knows he doesn’t require the same game of hardball? And lastly, the show barely tracked the years of its students, which means Murphy could easily stick to his real-time formula and keep these cast members on for two additional years (presuming they started as freshman). Instead, Murphy insists that “everyone knows they started as sophomores.” Really Mr. Murphy? I guess “everyone” doesn’t include The Dishmaster, because I was under the impression they all started as freshman, which gives them four years on the show — not three. His assumptions are certainly financially convenient — and suspicious.

I’ve made it very clear that I prefer a woman with curves.  And I think most men agree.  After all, what man wants to have sex with a woman that looks like a little boy?  Sara Ramirez represents the curvy girls on the cover of Latina Magazine, and she’s very honest about the pressure of losing weight in Hollywood.  Judging from the cover, she’s got it under control.  She also reveals a whole lot of nothing about Grey’s Anatomy, saying she contemplated leaving the show at one point because of all the “drama.”  I realize her contract puts her on a tight verbal leash, but the ambiguity is irritating.  I think we can all guess what she’s referring to, though.

Katherine Heigl addressed her image problems head-on, while promoting her new film. Though I’ve picked on Heigl for “biting the hand that feeds her,” I think her response shows that she’s on the right track.  The truth is that most of what she said in the press was correct.  It all started with Grey’s Anatomy, when Isaiah Washington called T.R. Knight a faggot on set, and the creators brushed it aside, leaving Knight to handle the media bedlam on his own.  Heigl bashed both the show and Washington, in defense of her best friend.  She scored major points with me for doing so, and then quickly squandered my support when she publicly discussed her contract negotiation with Grey’s Anatomy, saying that she called it off because “she wasn’t getting the respect she deserved.”  Everyone knows that you don’t publicly discuss your contract — it’s unprofessional.  To make matters worse, she took herself out of the Emmys, because she didn’t feel that the writing was good enough to warrant an award.  Again, it’s not the best idea to insult your writers, especially since writer fatigue is common on a long-running show, and an actor can’t expect great material for five seasons straight.  She also called Knocked-Up ” sexist,” which didn’t sit well with Seth Rogen and Judd Apatow, who later bashed her on Howard Stern.  Personally, I thought the movie was sexist, but it’s not exactly a press-friendly statement.  So here’s the moral of the Katherine Heigl story — sometimes she’s right and sometimes she’s not.  If the girl could just reign it in a little, instead of becoming a robot that churns out the stereotypical answers in interviews (which I predict we will start to see), she’ll be just fine.  Watch her discuss the issue below.

Deadline reports that Patrick Dempsey’s contract is up at the end of next season, and he is seriously considering leaving the show.  Like Katherine Heigl, his film career has taken off since the show began, and he reportedly wants to focus on some leading man roles that he has in the pipeline.  As an aside, ’Grey’s Anatomy’ sounds like a pretty miserable place to work.  Though the actors insist that they are like “family,” something tells me that’s a lie.  First you had the Isaiah Washington scandal, then T.R. Knight begged to get out of his contract, and finally, there was that endless drama with Katherine Heigl.  Now – Patrick Dempsey wants to leave!?  What are they not telling us?