*50 Cent has weighed in on Terrence Howard’s legal battle against his talent agency.
Howard claims racism as a factor in a lawsuit accusing CAA (Creative Arts Agency) of lowballing his “Empire” pay. The complaint alleges the agency prioritized their interests, and that of Fox and the show’s producers (including Lee Daniels) over his own, Variety reports.
Per the outlet, Howard’s “complaint does not cite a specific dollar amount for damages but it does seek compensatory and punitive damages.”
“Not only did it become abundantly clear that his agents led him on a path to rely on information that was misleading, he discovered that this was the result of the fact that CAA was not acting in his best interest, but in the in interest of their own financial benefit as well as the interest of the Production Companies and the producers, Daniels and Strong,” the complaint states, according to Variety.
Howard claims he averaged $325,000 per episode for “Empire,” but the salary was less than some of his peers paid. The lawsuit names Jon Hamm, who earned around $500,000 an episode for the show “Mad Men,” and Kevin Spacey bagged the same amount for his leading role in “House of Cards.”
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Howard believes racism is the reason for his poorly packaged deals.
“Under normal circumstances, had CAA not been the packaging agent, and had CAA not been concurrently representing the Production Companies, where their sole financial interest would have been the 10% fee from the compensation received by Howard, they would have most certainly fought for Howard in a manner that most producers are accustomed to seeing CAA agents engage in,” the complaint continues.
According to Variety, Howard’s lawyer, James Bryant, said at a press conference: “Over the last several years, agencies have become much more powerful and found a much more lucrative way of making money. It’s by being the packaging agent, where you represent actors, producers, production companies and your own financial interest.”
He continued: “That’s where that fiduciary duty begins to break down. That’s why we’re here today.”
50 Cent commented on the lawsuit on social media and urged Howard to contact him.
“Damn @theterrencehoward call my phone I will get you the money they was supposed to get for you,” he wrote on Instagram. “Im not playing no games over here.”
Hip Hop DX reports that 50 Cent signed a production deal with Fox last year.
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