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Many of you may have watched Friends when it was on television and may even still watch the reruns. In 2000, the case of Friends, one of the hottest shows on television, demanded a pay increase. The demand was made with a valid contract in place and near the time NBC was to announce its fall lineup. The six stars demanded $1,000,000 each per episode. NBC settled for $750,000 per star, up from the stars’ $150,000 per episode figure renegotiated in 1998.

When stars seek to renegotiate contracts before their expiration, the network can replace them if they fail to live up to their contracts, and it can enforce the standard contractual clause, which prohibits them from doing other television work until the expiration of their contracts. Recasting six stars for a highly successful show would not be feasible. To offset the stars’ bargaining power, NBC prepared a television promotion that would relabel the last show for that season as the “series finale” and announce “See how it all ends on Friends.” The cast were informed of NBC’s threat to end the series in this manner. Renegotiations quickly ensued and led to the $750,000 agreement. Two years later the six stars obtained their goal of $1 million per episode paychecks.

Jay Leno was asked about the tactics of the Friends stars. He responded, “You have to get what you can while you can in this business.

What is a breach? Did the cast commit an anticipatory breach or a breach when they asked for more money during the contract? If the cast is found to be in breach, what type of remedies could NBC recover? Do you agree/disagree with Jay Leno’s comments?