Y&R: Eric Braeden and Sony reach deal

[Sylph]

[MarkH]

If Sony didn't want him back, he wouldn't be back. Yes, in this game of chicken they threw some interesting obstacles in the way, but their intent--it seems clear--was to have him back on their terms.

If Eric got something like a three-year deal with no- or extended-cycles, and or more generous outs, he can probably view this as a compromise.

And if he got an apology for the way this was handled...that probably was a big part of it too.

[DeeeDee]

It depends.

Morrow can rise to the occasion when absolutely necessary but he can't carry the show.

[lovely_m]

When it comes to vets and paycuts, I've always said that they should take the cut and they should still make the most money. In this economy the shows just don't have the money to pay them what they made back in the glory days.

What pisses me off is when the show said we can't afford to keep Don Diamont, we have ask other vets to take a paycut, but were going to bring in new characters. Sometimes these characters aren't played by actors who will get newbie pay. They keep adding members to a family most fans dislike (The Fishers) and keep characters that are despised by most of the fans (Gloria, Jeffery, and Eden). It feels very condisending.

I think one of the reasons that Braden got more press than his female counterparts is because he went to the press and complained. People recognize Victor Newman, but not Eric Braden. http://www.youtube.c...player_embedded

As for the Newman children, Muhney is the "future star of the show" and Morrow gets so much screentime. Erin and Heinle are most likely to be fired.

[sheilaforever]

With a huge difference: the role Adam is a real character which needs to be played with lawyers whereas Nick is just da dude.

Therefore I find Muhney far more criminal than Morrow although they bring similar zeal and chops.

[MarkH]

Sadly true, though I believed otherwise in the wake of Cassie's death.

Here's the thing, though. Y&R could easily do a 50% contract cast reduction, and play their star cast 4-5 days a week. The writers don't believe this, but it could absolutely work. That is a HUGE salary reduction, without cutting the individual actors. It just means you play your core more, have fewer supporting players (although the stars can support one another if the stories are cross-pollinated). I think the shows are afraid that a small cast can't pull off 5 hours a week...but if they'd just play all the BEATS...all the moments...each character REACTS to every major happening...lots of expository recounting (like in the old days) so that other characters can react...that fills your show.

Newbies are needed, obviously, to slowly grow your franchise. But they need to be introduced sloooooooooooowly...like one every 6 months or every year or even less frequently...and they need to be tightly integrated with your core cast. Favorite examples for me from the past: Phyllis, Dru, and Malcolm.

[aMLCproduction]

I just think the show's money is being poorly handled. Why hire all these newbies? Save some of that money for sets, better directors. Amd better writers. And have less characters and tell a tighter story. Look at Days. They have a cheap head writer. Brining in the goods ratings wise.It took Days 18 months to build up to this point they are at now.( They also didn't do it with 26 week story cycles either) Yes there are a lot of new faces but Dena and team has woven them very carefully. Hogan and team can't do that. If they wrote the show well, they could weather the storm of losing Victor. The entire show needs a massive over hual.

[alphanguy74]

Carl, that wasn't his biggest credit by a mile. He had a role in Rat Patrol form 1966-68, and his biggest credit was his pivotal role in "Escape From Planet Of The Apes" in 1971. (GOOD movie, BTW)

[DRW50]

I was mostly joking, but that was one of the things I see people mention when they talk about EB.

[JimTolkien]

So let's make sure everyone is clear about this... Sony is THE BOSS!!! It appears that Eric's contract is the same as what Joshua got a couple years ago.

[MarkH]

Joshua got a 5-year deal. How do you find them to be the same?

[JimTolkien]

Cut in pay and an assured longer term deal. I don't believe a 3 year deal was in the cards at this time however Sony is not stupid and I am sure they saw that having Victor Newman on canvas while shaping the next generation at the same time would be more than beneficial to the show. I happen to agree. Now if the writing continues to pick up as it started to last week..well.. I think both Sony and EB got what they wanted to this deal and we will probably see a bit of tweaking to Victor.

I have no doubt whatsoever that CBS/Sony were tagteaming on this one - we the fans were so being manipulated!! But then they do that all the time with the writing!

[MarkH]

Hmmm. Interesting!

I do hope we see "tweaking' to Victor. This vile conscience-less fella isn't much fun. Since Braeden complained about it in the press, my hope is that he will have secured some kind of understanding that the character needed to be revised a bit.

[Juliajms]

I don't think there is anything they can do to make me like Victor. Having Colleen's heart beating in his chest is just too much for me. I guess there are things they can do to make the general audience forgive him. It'll be interesting to watch. I'm actually very curious about Y&R in the next six months. I think it's going to tell us a lot about the role the vets will have going forward and if they are really going to try to recenter this show, which I think they do need to do. If only because time is ticking and some of the veteran actors may not be here in 5 years.

[DRW50]

I don't really even think that the show cares about having people forgive Victor. I think they believe that Victor is a bad-ass and anything he does is OK, because hey that's just Victor, what a real man he is. Even now during this writing which so upset EB, they repeatedly remind us that Jack is as to blame for Patti's downward spiral. They still had Traci share that moment with him at the christening.

What I want to know is whether EB had a problem with the writing for Victor when Victor repeatedly wished Nikki dead and was constantly painted as this demigod, pathetic Jack and Adam sniveling in his wake, we were supposed to cheer this murder he likely committed, and weep over his mourning for Sabrina, which was then cured because he got it up for Ashley? That storyline, especially the way he treated Nikki, is what really made me hate Victor. That and the shameful way he behaved when Brad died, and the show's insistence on rewriting history to let us know that Abby saw Victor, no one else, as her father.

I think the show tried to weave the next generation in this year, but the writing is generally so weak that it was, by and large, a flop. The stories for Billy, the Scoobies, and Lily have all had a lot of moments that competent writers never would have gone near.