There’s always been an issue with Hollywood and age. The younger get all the opportunities. Well, that was then…seems things are beginning to change. Female actors are the first to be shoved aside, but luckily that’s changing with shows like Desperate Housewives and Cougar Town and movies like Sex and the City. It’s widely known that Midlife Hollywood writers often get put out to pasture, in favor of the more “hip” younger types.

-Tracy Pattin

That could be changing too. Look at this lawsuit:

If you are age 40 or over and wrote or were interested in writing for television, a proposed settlement may affect your rights.

Seventeen television networks and studios and seven talent agencies have agreed, subject to Court approval, to settle age discrimination allegations in connection with the hiring and representation of television writers age 40 or over, in nineteen separate class action lawsuits, for a collective payment of $70,000,000.  (Insurance carriers are paying approximately two-thirds of the settlement amount.)  If you qualify, you may send in a claim form to get benefits and may comment on or object to the settlement.  If you do not want to be part of the settlement, you can exclude yourself.

What’s This About?

The separate lawsuits all claim that the networks, studios and talent agencies discriminate on the basis of age in their employment and representation decisions. The defendants (including ABC, APA, Carsey-Werner, CBS, Columbia TriStar Television, Inc., DW SKG TV LLC, formerly known as DreamWorks SKG TV LLC, Fox, NBC Universal, Paradigm, Shapiro-Lichtman, Sony Pictures Television Inc., Spelling Television, The Gersh Agency, The Endeavor Agency, The WB Television Network, Touchstone Television, TriStar Television, Inc., Twentieth Century Fox, UPN, UTA, Warner Bros. Television, William Morris Agency, and William Morris Endeavor Entertainment LLC) deny that they discriminate, but believe it makes sense to end the litigation, which has been pending since 2000.  The Court did not decide which side was right.

Tags: age and Hollywood, Hollywood, Hollywood writers, over 40 lawsuits, TV, TV writers