"Mad Men" creator Matthew Weiner has been asked to cut six cast members from the AMC drama over the next three years -- not just two actors, as has been previously reported, a person familiar with Weiner's position tells TheWrap.
The individual also said Weiner was eager to get the show back on the air this year, and could do it if an agreement with AMC and production company Lionsgate comes soon. (In an interview late Tuesday, Weiner himself said he has been asked to cut six characters.)
Also read: 'Mad Men' Negotiations: Who Wants What
AMC announced Tuesday that the show will be delayed until early 2012 because of ongoing negotiations between the network, Lionsgate, and Weiner.
Weiner has refused AMC's demands that he trim each show by two minutes to make room for more ads, include more product placements, and eliminate six cast members -- two per season -- over its next three seasons, the person said.
Another person, familiar with AMC's thinking, told TheWrap that Weiner has been asked to be judicious about signing actors if their characters might have only one or two lines all season. But no edict has been issued to cut entire characters or to fire actors, this person said.
Also read: Kurt Sutter to Matthew Weiner: 'Whore or Saint, Pick One'
(Deadline and The Daily, which first broke details of the negotiations, both said Weiner was asked to cut two actors from the cast.)
Under the network and Lionsgate's proposals, Weiner would receive $30 million over the next three years, making him the highest-paid show runner in basic cable. But Weiner isn't amenable to the other proposals.
"His artistic silence isn’t for sale," the person familiar with his position told TheWrap.
AMC said in a statement Tuesday that the show would return for its fifth season next year. "While we are getting a later start than in years past due to ongoing, key non-cast negotiations, 'Mad Men' will be back for a fifth season in early 2012," AMC said.
The "non-cast" refers to Weiner.
"Mad Men," which has won three consecutive Emmys for best drama, has been AMC's flagship series since its debut, and was one of the first shows in AMC's highly successful return to scripted television in 2007. It provided a model for the later success of "Breaking Bad" and "The Walking Dead," the network's highest-rated series.
One reason "Mad Men" may not be able to return this year is that AMC may not have an open time slot: The network runs all of its shows on Sundays at 10 p.m., and already has "The Killing" (which debuts Sunday), "Breaking Bad," and "The Walking Dead" set to air this year.
In an interview with The New York Times on Tuesday, Weiner confirmed that AMC has asked him to cut his cast and slightly cut the length of each episode.
