Patricia Richardson has opened up about how her pay disparity on House Enchancment led to the sequence’ finish.
“Once I took the job, they mentioned it wasn’t meant to be the Tim Allen present. It was meant to be our present,” the actress advised the Los Angeles Occasions.
However when it got here to pay and credit, Richardson signifies the 2 weren’t handled equally.
Richardson recalled that for the present’s third season, she managed to renegotiate her contract to safe a assure of 4 episodes per season targeted on her character, Jill Taylor, together with a revenue share level that entitled her to a back-end proportion of the sequence’ earnings.
“I knew that residuals simply get much less and fewer, and I felt that I’m going to finish up being an enormous a part of no matter this present is,” she mentioned. “It’s going to work due to me nearly as a lot as due to Tim.”
Whereas Richardson was in a position to share her enter on her character, guiding the male-dominated writers room on the way to write for the matriarch of the Taylor household, she was denied a producer credit score, she says, arguing that was allegedly as a consequence of a worry that it could set a precedent for different actors. Nevertheless, Allen was credited as an government guide within the first season and later turned an government producer throughout the sixth.
House Enchancment co-creator and government producer Carmen Finestra denied this, claiming it was probably Disney’s determination to not give Richardson the producer credit score.
When the present reached its eighth season, Richardson needed to go away it, as she needed to spend extra time along with her kids following her divorce from Ray Baker. In line with the actress, each she and Allen have been on the identical web page in regards to the sequence needing to finish after its prolonged run.
She defined that she acquired a suggestion of $1 million per episode, whereas Allen was supplied $2 million. Utilizing the pay disparity to her benefit, Richardson proposed that ABC ought to pay her the identical quantity as Allen and provides her an government producer title, or else she would depart.
“I knew that Disney would by no means pay me that a lot. That was my method to say ‘no’ and was a bit little bit of a flip-off to Disney,” defined Richardson. “I’d been there all this time, they usually by no means even paid me a 3rd of what Tim was making, and I used to be working my ass off. I used to be a giant purpose why ladies have been watching.”
As she predicted, her proposal was rejected, she recalled, and the sequence got here to an finish.
“I used to be mad at Tim as a result of he was leaving me alone being the one particular person saying no, which made me really feel horrible and just like the dangerous man and he was upset with me for leaving,” Richardson mentioned of the strain between her and Allen towards the tip of the sequence.
The previous co-stars went on to reunite in 2015 for Final Man Standing, although Richardson confirmed the 2 haven’t saved in contact.
Richardson additionally argued that, whereas followers have reconnected with a lot of their favourite TV exhibits from the ’90s due to streaming, House Enchancment hasn’t acquired the identical remedy regardless of being successful sitcom.
“Hollywood hates our present,” she mentioned. “After they discuss what the very best exhibits of the ‘90s have been, they won’t give House Enchancment credit score.”
She believes that Allen being a vocal conservative has damage former followers’ connection to the present. “I feel it’s about Tim, and it’s about his politics,” mentioned Richardson. She added that she doesn’t personally like his political leanings, both.
This hasn’t stopped her from championing the sequence. “I’m actually happy with what it meant to our viewers,” she mentioned. “I don’t care what anyone says, I’m happy with the legacy.”
A rep for Allen advised the Occasions he wasn’t out there to remark.