AMC and Lionsgate Close to Deal for "Mad Men's" Season Five
Mar 22, 2011
by Michael Schneider


"Mad Men" fans, don't despair yet:
Don Draper and company will be back for Season 5, but perhaps a few weeks later than usual.





Insiders at AMC tell TV Guide Magazine that a deal is close with "Mad Men" executive producer Matthew Weiner and Lionsgate, which produces the show.

If a deal can be finalized shortly, the show will be a month or so behind schedule (the writers are usually back to work by February) — but could still hit the network by fall.






"It's always varied when 'Mad Men' premiered," says the insider, noting that "Mad Men" has sometimes returned as early as mid-July, but in Season 3 didn't return until August (when the show and Weiner last went through negotiations).

Cable networks often stagger their launches, and a later-than-usual bow for "Mad Men" would hardly be unprecedented.









A frenzy of news stories about the negotiation — prompted in part by the Los Angeles premiere of AMC's new murder mystery "The Killing" on Monday night — could very well be the catalyst to finally finalize the long-gestating deal between AMC, Lionsgate and Weiner.

Weiner is looking for a salary bump; Lionsgate, in turn, is likely looking to increase the license fee on the show (and extend the show through a sixth season).

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Mad-Men-Season5-1030984.aspx

"Mad Men's" Fifth Season Will Return in 2012
Mar 29, 2011
by Adam Bryant


There's good news and there's bad news for "Mad Men" fans.

AMC has officially given the green light to a fifth season of the adman drama, the network announced Tuesday. But ongoing negotiations with series creator Matthew Weiner will push the show's return to early 2012.





AMC made the announcement as a Deadline.com report surfaced about Weiner's prolonged renegotiations with Lionsgate, which produces "Mad Men".

The latest sticking points in the proposed contract — which a source tells TVGuide.com would pay Weiner roughly $30 million over three years, making him the highest-paid showrunner on basic cable — involve cost-cutting measures and an increase in advertising during the show's running time.







According to Deadline, AMC and Lionsgate have asked Weiner to integrate product placement into the show and to cut two minutes from the show's running time to accommodate more commercials.

(The latter was also an issue during Weiner's renegotiations two years ago.)



Further, Weiner has been asked to trim the members of the cast to save money, according to Deadline.

(A source tells TVGuide.com that all the principal cast members will return; any casting changes will involve some actors appearing in fewer episodes.)






"Mad Men's" typical episode runs about 48 minutes, considerably longer than a typical network drama and a couple minutes more than most basic-cable dramas.

AMC had no comment beyond the announced renewal.

http://www.tvguide.com/News/Mad-Men-Renewed-1031206.aspx