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Is ‘Mad Men’ Killing the Best Shows on TV? One Showrunner Thinks So and Says Why

Aug 12, 2011  •  Post A Comment

It’s hard to argue that "Mad Men," airing on AMC, is not one of the best shows on TV. But could it somehow be responsible for killing some other excellent series?

That’s the theory of one of the most outspoken showrunners in Hollywood, "Sons of Anarchy" creator Kurt Sutter. It also involves why AMC cut loose "The Walking Dead" showrunner Frank Darabont,  reports New York Magazine’s Vulture blog.

Sutter tweeted, "Why Darabont got fired — Weiner," the story notes. Sutter was referring to "Mad Men" creator and showrunner Matthew Weiner and his recent deal that gives him about $10 million a year for the next two seasons of "Mad Men." "He held AMC hostage, broke their bank, budgets were slashed, shit rolled down hill onto [‘Breaking Bad’ creator Vince] Gilligan and Frank. No one else wants to f—— say it, but the greed of ‘Mad Men’ is killing the other two best shows on TV — ‘Breaking Bad’ and ‘Walking Dead.’ "

Sutter doesn’t work for or with AMC. His "Sons of Anarchy" airs on FX. Sutter grabbed attention recently by blasting the Emmys for snubbing his show, as previously reported.

Charlie Collier, president of AMC, has said that it was anticipated that Weiner’s salary would go up. To read more of Collier’s comments about AMC’s scripted series, our friend Maureen Ryan interviewed Collier for her "Stay Tuned" column on AOLTV earlier this month.

One Comment

  1. I guess we’ll know for sure when the second season of The Walking Dead premieres this fall. If any aspect of it doesn’t stand up to last year’s premiere season, the fans will bail-out in droves. Zombie aficionados know the difference between quality and crap. Then we’ll all know once and for all the real reason for AMC “canning” Darabont. I got a feeling that AMC made a huge mistake. It was Darabont’s passion for the story and the genre that made The Walking Dead TV series what it was. Good Luck AMC! All of these leaks can’t be lies!

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