Darabonts AMC Deposition Released

contd

>In the deposition, he is particularly harsh on AMC executives.

>"When they did rarely show up on the [Georgia-based] set, [they] would ... drive in from the airport in their air conditioned car, race into the air conditioned tent we had there so the actors could have a break and not pass out from the heat, poke their heads out on occasion, and half an hour later jump back in their car and fly back to their air conditioned office in New York. I had a tremendous lack of respect for them."

>Darabont thinks the AMC executives should have "put on some combat boots" to see the cast and crew working in 110-degree heat and "pick[ing" ticks off their groin and their ankles at night."

>The problems escalated, according to Darabont, who said he was managing "crisis-level problems arising on the first episode of the second season."

>The footage turned in by the director for that episode wasn't up to snuff, he says, so he told the executives that he would have to step away from the writers' room, where they were attempting to develop the latter episodes of the second season of Walking Dead in order to shoot additional footage and put focus in the editing room.

>Darabont says this led to a conversation with Susie Fitzgerald, vp scripted programming. He asked her whether she agreed with this approach. He recalls her saying, "Absolutely I agree with your assessment. You have to do the crisis management. I understand that that's going to delay those scripts coming in by three weeks."

>Joel Stillerman

Well there's your main problem.

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>Later, Fitzgerald apparently denied having the conversation.

>Darabont said her denial floored him.

>"So, she out and out just lied to my face in front of everybody," he testified. "I can prove that because after the meeting I went back to the editing room to tell my editor to finish up a few things there that day anyway that needed finishing and to tell my editor what had happened."

>As for why Darabont says he was fired, executives "concocted" a reason, he testified.

>"They accused me of not having directors tone meetings," he said, referring to the way in which a showrunner is supposed to sit down with each director of each episode to go over the script — scene by scene — and convey the tone of the show. "And I said, 'That's absolutely not true, I have had a directors tone meeting with every single director this season.' "

>An AMC spokesperson gave THR this statement about Darabont's testimony: "Frank Darabont has made it clear that he has strong opinions about AMC and the events that led to his departure from The Walking Dead. The reality is that he has been paid millions of dollars under the terms of his contract, which we honored, and we will continue to vigorously defend against this lawsuit." Darabont's deposition isn't the only testimony to go public.

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>Glen Mazzara, who once worked on The Shield before becoming Darabont's top lieutenant on Walking Dead, taking over the showrunning duties in the middle of the second season before leaving after the third, also testifies.

>Asked whether AMC treated Darabont unfairly, Mazzara answered yes.

>Mazzara added, "I believe that Frank was executing his responsibilities and duties as showrunner and there was a personal rift between [Walking Dead co-creator Robert] Kirkman and Darabont and between Darabont and the AMC executives, and that when the material for the finale came in and Frank said I need some time to figure out a plan of how to pursue this and what we're going to re-shoot and what it will take to do this, AMC was unwilling to give him that time to solve the issue and they let him go without notifying him that he was, that the issues were that series. That if he did not appropriately solve these issues, he was about to be fired."

>Darabont was performing his responsibilities, said Mazzaro — delivering scripts, being in touch with the cast, dealing with department heads.

>And even though Darabont was forced out midway through the second season, Mazzara said his imprint was evident throughout all the episodes. It's important because as the one who first developed Walking Dead and brought it to AMC, Darabont was entitled to get as much as 10 percent of profits from the series, but because he was terminated in the middle of the second season, AMC only counted him as three-quarters vested, meaning he only got 7.5 percent.

Well this is interesting. So sad that the series just got more and more popular while the quality of the show has been going down since he left.

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>"A bunch of people running around on a farm running from zombies," said Mazzara. "And, you know, they're looking for a missing girl, girl comes out of the barn, everyone's upset about that, and then, and then they encounter a different group of people and have to figure out what to do and then there's a zombie attack at the end of the season. That was, I felt, Mr. Darabont's imprint as well as a cinematic approach to filming that material."

>On cross-examination, Mazzara was asked if he had not taken over as showrunner and Darabont had continued on Walking Dead, would that have "killed the show."

>Mazarra responded, "Given the status of Episode 201, I would like to say that I did think Episode 201 was a show killer. I did say that."

Finished.

At least Mazarra can admit it was a fiasco, pity he is still a hack who almost killed the show stone dead with his show running.

>>64558849
This. It's nigh unwatchable now.

Premiere episode is good, it meanders for 14 episodes, then the finale ends on a cliffhanger. It's pretty fucking disgusting, but the general public would watch it if it was someone taking a shit on a plate for an hour, just like Star Wars and any generic Marvel film.

>>64558934

I think it has definitely went through an improvement with Scott M Gimple as the show runner now.

He listened to Franks words of deviating from the material to a degree but reverting back when its losing its focus.

However the show still isnt what it could have been

>>64558849
Not really. Its better than ever now.

>>64559349

Then season one?

I like it but let's not get crazy here

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>>64559349
>Its better than ever now

Well if the spoilers for next season are true then we are in for one hell of a ride

>>64560886

Why what are they?

>>64561359
spoilers: there's zombies

>>64558581
>According to Darabont, AMC cut the budget "from 3.4 to 3," referring to the millions it takes to produce episodes of Walking Dead.
They shoot an episode for 3m? Are the cast paid in fucking peanuts or something? Is that why they're continuously out on the con circuit?

>>64563301
You think it should cost more than 3 mil to shoot a 45 min episode?

>>64563720
No, but shooting on location is never cheap. And adding onto that the shitty sets the seem to build every fourth episode, plus crappy effects. Isn't really leaving much for their cast

>>64563720
>You think it should cost more than 3 mil to shoot a 45 min episode

Hell fucking yes. GOT episodes cost $6 million. Breaking Bad cost 3 mil and TWD is way more expensive than that. Shit even Mad Men was 2 mil an episode.

AMD are notorious for having some of the worst management around now. It's why I have no faith in the Preacher adaptation.

>>64563301
Keep in mind also that they made it a 13 episode season too, from 6 in season 1

>>64564131
>Walt and Jesse arguing in a desert or fucking around in a basement
>same cost as a dozen characters on location with god knows how many additional people in full zombie costume and makeup

jesus christ, no wonder TWD is such shit

>>64558666
>talking about working in georgia like it's a third world warzone
kek this guy sounds like a bitch

>>64564781
It is for some producer.

>>64564781

Are you at all familiar about film and television production, southern heat waves and 12 hour shoots?

>>64564913
>southern heat waves
In Georgia we just call that "Summer." Replaced immediately by 4 months of miserable clammy cold.

>>64565291

Yeah but not everyone on set would be acclimatized to that

Add working on a shoot onto it especially one involving so many extras and you could see how hed moan

>>64565387
>Yeah but not everyone on set would be acclimatized to that
You don't acclimatize to it at all. My point is that summer, in Georgia is only nominally different from hell. And the only people who would claim otherwise are the ones who've never experienced the misery.

I mean for fucks sake, one summer in South Georgia and you gain a new appreciation for the institution of slavery.

>>64565785

Sounds like a fairly awful place to live

I'd be more willing to be on Darabonts side if he managed to produce more than a single episode of watchable content in the two years he worked on the show.

How fucking good was that pilot and where he pulled it from I have no idea.

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>>64565990
It has it's perks. Nothing better than southern girl in their summer outfits.

Or getting blitzed out of your mind and floating down a river in a tube with some friends to escape the heat.

>>64564131
>Preacher adaptation
>Black Tulip

Only way I am seeing that crap is that if they get that guy from The Human Centipede (the doctor) to play Herr Starr
Dropped like a sack of bricks

>>64566135

>season 1
>not watchable

>>64566135
The pilot is basically the comic. Frame by frame with a couple of nice things added

Frank is only good at following the source material, he sucks if he tries to do something other than that. Thats why he has done the best Stephen King movies.

>>64566189
All the best parts of preacher are too edgy for tv.

>>64565990
It is

>>64559349
This

First 3 episodes of this season were way better than any of the first 2 seasons.

unfortunately its become a meme opinion on here that S1 was some kind of god tier show when really it was generic cheesy romero shit.

>>64561359
negan kills daryl

it will be a glorious night

I like season one as much as the next guy but even season one had its faults.

>still had dumb zombie deaths
>forced "well dad taught me lures!" and the "foreshadowing" of amys death
>the cdc

It seems to me that the newer season have the capacity to be a lot better tuan season one and sometimes it is, but it also turns to shit too

>>64566165

That sounds real fucking comfy. I can't stand balmy weather but Southern girls are my shit