Executives at the newly-launched digital network Quibi deny reports that Reese Witherspoon received $6 million for voicing a series and added they’ve taken a 10 percent pay cut amid rumors of layoffs.
Sources with knowledge of the situation revealed to DailyMail.com that Reese’s take home was actually ‘less than 1/6th’ of the multi-million dollar sum that was reported by Page Six on Wednesday.
According to the original report, staffers at Jeffrey Katzenberg’s commuter-focused platform were upset about Witherspoon’s purportedly massive contract amid layoffs.
The latest: Executives at the newly-launched digital network Quibi deny reports that Reese Witherspoon received $6 million for voicing over a series
‘Reese was paid absolutely nowhere near this amount of money,’ a source with knowledge of the matter told DailyMail.com
‘In fact, it is less than 1/6th of what was reported. The show didn’t even cost half of the incorrectly reported and highly exaggerated 6 million dollar figure.’
Additionally, in a company memo obtained by DailyMail.com, executives said they’d ‘volunteered to take a 10 percent pay cut because it’s the right thing to do’ amid the economic collapse spurred by the coronavirus and the subsequent lockdown to quell the spread of the pandemic.
In the memo, the company said that ‘the talent compensation’ in regards to Reese ‘was utterly inaccurate.’
‘Quibi may have to implement cutbacks, and people are fuming that stars like Reese got paid millions,’ a source told Page Six.
Witherspoon appeared on the network’s nature docu-series Fierce Queens which focuses on the ‘remarkable females of the animal kingdom’ but insiders say it’s performing poorly.
‘Quibi may have to implement cutbacks, and people are fuming that stars like Reese got paid millions,’ a source first told Page Six.
Fierce Queens is produced by BBC’s Natural History Unit and was described by the insider as one of the ‘weakest’ shows on the digital platform.
Big name: Witherspoon narrates the network’s nature docu-series which focuses on the ‘remarkable females of the animal kingdom’ but insiders say it’s performing poorly on Quibi
‘The mood is dark,’ a source said of morale at the company,’ noting that ‘overtime is being slashed for lower level employees and layoffs have already begun.
‘Quibi may have to implement cutbacks, and people are fuming that stars like Reese got paid millions,’ a source told Page Six.
Reese’s husband Jim Toth, a former big time talent agent at CAA, is currently the head of content acquisitions and talent at Quibi. The network was designed specifically with commuters in mind. The videos are formatted to be viewed on a smart phone and the shows are 10 minutes or less.
All in the family: Reese’s husband Jim Toth, a former big time talent agent at CAA, is currently the head of content acquisitions and talent at Quibi
Problems: The network launched in April during COVID-19 stay-at-home orders and has been struggling due to the format which was designed specifically with commuters in mind
Quibi’s on-the-go designs launched at the worst possible time during the COVID-19 pandemic, when the country effectively stopped commuting all together. While other streaming platforms like Netflix and Hulu reported record jumps in new subscribers and streams during coronavirus, Quibi fell far short of its projections.
The bite-sized network has more than $1 billion in funding and has been making tweaks to try to change with the stay-at-home nature of viewership these days, according to Hypebeast.
Despite launching as a mobile-only network, Quibi is now able to be used on Chromecast and Apple AirPlay and a new feature will allow users to share content on social media.
Reworking: Despite launching with shows from huge talents like Lebron James,Chance the Rapper, Anna Kendrick and Chrissy Teigen, Quibi failed to make the splash it and its investors intended and is undergoing tweaks to reformat
Despite launching with shows from huge talents like LeBron James, Chance the Rapper, Anna Kendrick and Chrissy Teigen, Quibi failed to make the splash it and its investors intended.
The bite-sized network has more than $1 billion in funding and has been making tweaks to try to change with the stay-at-home nature of viewership these days, according to Hypebeast.
Despite launching as a mobile-only network, Quibi is now able to be used on Chromecast and Apple AirPlay and a new feature will allow users to share content on social media.
Despite launching with shows from huge talents like Lebron James, Chance the Rapper, Anna Kendrick and Chrissy Teigen, Quibi failed to make the splash it and its investors intended.
Users were able to sign up for a 90-day free trial in April but when that expires the numbers will likely take a dive.
Source: Daily Mail – ShowBiz
