A Los Angeles jury awarded actor Don Johnson more than $23 million in profits from the CBS TV series “Nash Bridges” the actor said he was owed.
Johnson sued three entertainment companies — Rysher Entertainment, 2929 Entertainment and Qualia Capital — more than a year ago. The jury award came after a two-week trial in which Johnson attended every session.
Rysher Entertainment argued that the show lost money overall due to an expensive production budget, forcing the company to not be able to pay the actor. The company also said that Johnson had already made $40 million from fees as an actor and producer and was not owed any more money.
“We’re disappointed in the verdict and we’ll appeal,” Rysher’s attorney, Bart H. Williams, of Munger Tolles & Olson, said. “We respect the jury’s decision and we think there are a lot of pretty significant appellate issues.”
Media reports said that Qualia Capital had no comment on the verdict and an attorney for 2929 Entertainment, which is a production company founded by Mark Cuban and Todd Wagner, did not return phone messages seeking comment.
The verdict confirmed that Johnson’s contract for “Nash Bridges” included a provision that made him a 50 percent owner in the show’s copyright if it aired 66 episodes – opening the door for possibly more money for the 60-year-old actor. The show ran 122 episodes.
Johnson’s attorney, Mark Holscher of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, said the actor could still collect as much as $25 million more in the future because “Nash Bridges” still airs in 45 countries around the world.
“It was my idea, and I owned the rights in the first place,” Johnson said in a statement. “From the beginning, I have asked only that Rysher honor our contract, and I am so pleased that the jury agreed with me.”
The key testimony came from Skip Brittenham, the attorney who crafted Johnson’s agreement with the production companies more than a decade ago. Brittenham testified that the copyright ownership stake was a “one-of-a-kind” deal in Hollywood.
“Nash Bridges” ran on TV from 1996-2001 and, according to Holscher, generated more than $325 million in revenue, including $150 million from worldwide syndication.
