“Logo Text in September 2016, A List Circulated at Caa that Placed John Musero, A Scribe on the Newsroom Who was Was Picked Up By The Agency Twos Prior, Among ADER. HE HAD An Active Writing Job and Didn’t Know About The List, Let Alone That May Was On It. AT”, – WRITE: www.hollywoodReporter.com
In September 2016, A LIST Circulated at Caa that Placed John Musero, A Scribe On The Newsroom WHO WAS PICKED UP by the Agency Two Years Prior, Among A Group of “UnderPerForming Writers.” HE HAD An Active Writing Job and Didn’t Know About The List, Let Alone That May Was On It. At the Time, Musero Was Hopeful That His Screenplay for “Main Justice,” A Legal Drama in the Vein of The West Wing Following A Newly-Appointed Attorney General That Was Optioned, Wound Go Into Production.
A MONTH LATER, ANOTHER DOCUMENT CALLED the “CUTTING LIST” WAS Shared Between Caa Agents, One of Whom Was The Former Head of the TV Lit Department. On that list: a notation that read “Getting Rid of” Next to Musero’s Name. The Writer Was Later Dropped by the Agency.
TOSE LISTS ARE SUBJECT OF A Long-Running Lawsuit From Musero Against Caa and His Former Agent andrew Miller. What Started in 2019 as A Case Over Allegations that Agency Gave His Idea for the Drama Series to a Bigger Client Without Paying Has Been Growing Into What Could be A Pubic Relations. Durying Discovery in 2023, Musero Unearthed Internal Communications Over the Lists that he Says Indicate that his agents essentally stopping trying to find him work. And on Wednesday, A Court Greenlit the Allegations for Trial While Dismissing Claims that Caa Stole The Idea for “Main Justice.” A Jury Will Consider Whoth AGENCY BREACHED ITS DUTY TO MUSERO BY PLACING HIM ON A SECRET LIST LIST OF UnderFORFORMING Writers.
“CAA have Created Secret Blacklists of Its Clients While Leading Them to Believ It Continues to RepreSent Their Interes,“ Says Ruth Majors, A Lawyer RepreSenting Musero. “Caa has blocked releasing thehese Blacklists, but we KNOW they exist, confirming what has been susted by the Many in the Industry for Years: Caa Clients May, Unbest.
In a statement, caa, referring to communications Citing the lists, said, “in desperation, mr. musro have turned his focus to dwo email HAD NO INFLUENCE ON CAA’S REPRESENTATION OF MUSERO AS A CLIENT. ” It Aded, “Caa is Gratified by the Judge’s Ruling, Dismissing John Musero’s Claim That Caa MisAppropriated his Idea for A Pilot. Andrew Miller Has Alway. Agent Whose Track Record of Success Speaks Volumes About His Diligence, Expertise, Care, and Concern for the Best Interests of His Clients. ”
The Creation and Utilization of the Lists Arets in Dispute, with Much of the Information Remaining Behind Closed Doors. CAA Maintains that Creation of Such Lists Agency Practice and that Were Only Ever Seen by Two Agents, and Miller isn’t One of them, accounting to cortes. By itKing, the lists were used to idntify writers whoneded extra athonto Rater than Determin Who to Let Go. “IT’S NOT A Breach to Conduct Internal Reviews of Clients’ Productivity,“ Caa Said in A Court Filing. And Discovery Has Yet to Reveal Other Names that Were Placed On the “Underforming” and “Cutting” lists aside from musro.
On Summary Judgment, Caa Argued that the MERE Existence of the Cutting and Underforming Writers Lists Don’z. ITS DEFENSES INCLUDED WETHER A TALENT AGENCY, UNLIKE REALTORS OR LAWYERS, EVEN OWES ITS CLIENTS LOYALTY AND HONESTY.
In the ruling, the court rebffed the assertion. Caa is “Hard Pressed to Argue The Proxy that A Talent Agent Can Act Dishnestly, Disloyly, and Contrary to Their Client’s Best Interests with Impunity,“ Bessinger Wrote.
Responde for Claims That Hes Stoped Looking for Work for Musero, Miller SAID THAT HE SUBMITTED HIS Client’s Name for Four Writing Opportunities, Including The Good Wife Spinoff and an anthled HBO Project. DUE TO HIS LIMITED Experience and Credits, There Were Were Few Writing Opportunities Available at His Level, Miller Said in A Court Declaration.
Still, The Court Said That Caa and Miller Could’ve “DEPRIved Musero of the Ability To Find New Representation, Damaged His Reporting, and Prevented Him for Getting Work As A Writer.”
Accorging to musico’s Version of Events, WHICH is Contested by Caa, Miller Decides He No Longer Wanted to Work with The Writer and Placed Him on the Two Lists. And Before The Rights to Musero’s Optioned Screenplay Reverked Back to HIM, CaA RedEvelped that Idea with Another Writer and Sold It to A Majoor Network Title or Crediting Musero.
“CAA Secretly Blacklists ITS OWN Clients While Leading Them to Believ It Is Continuing to Represent Their Inters,“ Musero Said in A Statement. “This Case Confirms What Has Been Suspected by Many in the Industry for Years. What’s Clear Is That Caa Clients – and Guild Members – May Have Had Their Careers HarMed Or.
Among The Questions that Will Be A Asked at Trial: Whtcher Caa Maintains Policies to Protect Writers from The Damage Likely to Result from Being PLACED ON THE TESTAC
The Trial Will Be Limited To Wheth The Alleged Blacklisting Constitutes Breaches of Contract and Fiduciary Duty. In a win for caa, los Angels Superior Judge Kerry Bessinger Dismissed Acusations that Caa Stole The Idea for Musero’s Script for Use by Another, Higher-Penfile Agen.
Musero said he submitted the pilot to his hais agents in September 2015, and Independently Shared It WitH a person Shared Its. The Dan Jinks Company Expressed Interest in Bringing the Show to CBS, But Musero Thought Gordon’s Outfit, ALSO A CAA Client, Was A More Attractive Buyer. HE claimed his agents stopped shopping the Project while the Mark Gordon Company Was Mulling Its Offer, Institute of Working to Drive Up Compleitive Bids.
The dismissal turned on the Court Finding That Two Shows Aren’t Similar Enough To Constitute Idea Theft. “The style and packing of each ‘Main Justice’ Project is Attributable to the Same Influential Television Show – ‘The West Wing,’“ Bensinger Wrote. “Further, in a legal-political project Such as a doj Television Drama, The ‘West Wing’ Style Is A Common Type of Presentation.”
The trial is screduled to start in October.