Modern Family’s Ed O’Neill and Parks and Recreation’s Rob Lowe had some choice words for Hollywood at The Hollywood Reporter’s annual Emmy Comedy Actor Roundtable. The duo sounded off on low-paying acting jobs, with O’Neill specifically targeting HBO for offering him a key role in its planned David Mamet film about music producer Phil Spector but low-balling him on his fee. Lowe soon chimed in, claiming that studios exploit actors’ willingness to take good material for less money, a practice he called “bullshit.” Here’s the exchange:
Ed O’Neill: I just had a thing last week where I thought for sure I was going to do a thing for HBO with Al Pacino and Bette Midler. Mamet directing. And I get the offer, six weeks work, I’m playing Bruce Cutler, [Spector’s] lawyer, and they said “$40,000.”
Rob Lowe: “Ex-squeeze me?” (Laughs)
O’Neill: So I said, “I thought you said $40,000 for six weeks’ work.” “Yeah.” Scale. “Yeah.” Is Al working for scale?” “No.” “Is Bette working for scale?” “No.” I said, “Well, good luck.” Now, I’m not doing it.
Lowe: You can’t.
O’Neill: Of course I can’t do it. But then you say “Wait a minute, what the f—? You know. That lasts about three or four days. Then you say, “Well, I’m going to Hawaii.” That happens all the time.
Lowe: You know why it happens? It’s because they know that at the end of the day we love good material. And they will use that to exploit us. And that’s — excuse me — bullshit.
Neil Patrick Harris: Wow, it’s getting real!
Ed bundy obviously doesn’t need the money lol what i’d do for 40 grand….well we wont go into that 😛 lol xxx
Al Bundy even lol xx
Actors are so self-righteous sometimes. Granted, O’Neill’s great, and well known, so scale is little ridiculous. But frowning at 40 grand makes me livid. I don’t even make that in a year, and he’s turning it down for six weeks of work? Bullshit.
I agree, I like Ed O’Neil and I like the show he is in and think he is a fine actor. But it is so disheartening and disingenuous when he is laughing at $40,000 for 6 weeks worth of work. He should be careful with his words especially when they are being recorded. I understand his point, that he thinks he is valued more than what they want to pay. However, in today’s economy these words have meaning and I feel for the person who can’t make a monthly rent or mortgage payment and then have to hear this jacka** talk about turning down $40,000 and then going to Hawaii to forget about turning down that amount of money. I am not saying he is not entitled to more, I am not even saying that he shouldn’t have said those thoughts if he believes them, the only point I am trying to make is that words have consequences and his words just lost him a fan.