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Cast of 'Jersey Shore' Goes on Strike?

By Tanya Roth, Esq. on July 20, 2010 | Last updated on March 21, 2019

All "situation" jokes aside, there is reportedly a unfortunate state of affairs brewing between the cast of "Jersey Shore," the break-out MTV reality show, and the show's producers. Like so many in the business, the issue is money and who is supposedly getting more and who is not getting what they were promised. Allegedly.

According to USAToday, the bulk of the cast, including JWoww, Ronnie, Sammi, Pauly D and Vinny is seemingly on strike, refusing to film until the contract issues are sorted out. Under the contracts supposedly only covering season 2, the cast was set to be paid $10,000 per episode. Reports from TMZ say the most of the group feels "tricked" because new filming is beginning under the same terms. Peeling off from the cast are "The Situation" Sorrentino and Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi, who evidently plan to go ahead and film.

Exacerbating the situation is the report that Señor Situation has a bigger contract offering than any of his er, friends. The Chicago Sun-Times reports Mike Sorrentino is supposed to have a contract offer on the table that would give him between $27,500 to $45,000 an episode if he signed on for a fourth season.

If any of the Jersey gang studied history at all, and no, we are not speaking of world history or even U.S. history (God forbid), they would recall the great contract issues and negotiation strategy of the cast of a little show called "Friends." It has been well documented that although receiving differing salaries, the cast came together as a group before the third season of their long running show. This little show of collective bargaining ultimately resulted in a $1 million per episode paycheck for the talented cast.

If the Jersey girls and boys could act as a team for a short period of time, they might be able to accomplish a similar feat. Of course, the Friends had other things going for them, such as movie offers and a marketable talent, acting. But the cast of "Jersey Shore" should give it a try, you never know what the tide might wash in.

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