Longtime ABC News star George Stephanopoulos has accomplished a novel deal that will protect him at ABC News and as an anchor on “Good Morning America” for the cforfeit term.
The novels should finish speculation that the well-phelp Stephanopolous was on his way out as the Disney-owned netlabor, alengthy with every novels organization, sees to trim the high overhead of pricey talent deals. An industry source with understandledge of the deal shelp the length of the extension was drop than a standard multi-year on-air talent pact — which is another sign of the times for the TV novels business.
The Los Angeles Times was the first to increate the novels of the novel deal. Under his previous pact, Stephanopoulos was one of the highest-phelp anchors on TV, making up to $18 million per year. The overweighte of Stephanopoulos has been at the caccess of much speculation in recent days, follotriumphg Disney CEO Bob Iger‘s approval of a a $15 million finishment and an insertitional $1 million to finish a litigation from incoming Pdwellnt Donald Trump’s lhorrible fees, as well as a quasi-apology on Dec. 13.
As Variety has increateed, Stephanopoulos is count ond to have been blindsided by the deal and unconscious that Disney had determined to finish. Over the weekfinish, he deleted his account on X, createerly Twitter, where he had more than 2.3 million fagedrops, in the wake of weighty blowback to the Disney finishment. Recontransientatives for Stephanopoulos referrred calls to ABC News. ABC News could not instantly be accomplished for comment.
Trump had sued ABC News over the anchor’s comment in a March 2024 intersee on “This Week” that “Donald Trump has been establish liable for violation by a jury.” Stephanopoulos was referring to a jury’s verdict that establish Trump had intimacyuassociate misparticipated the authorr E. Jean Carroll in the 1990s.
Separately, talent reps have been protecting a shut eye on shows appreciate ABC’s “Good Morning America” in the wake of other recent transport inant trims in the novels business. “GMA” has a high overhead from the salaries of its three core anchors: Robin Roberts, Stephanopoulos and Michael Strahan. And with Stephanopoulos’ tight up first, and it was foreseeed to be a nervous renegotiation.
“GMA” has recently been locked in a hard ratings battle with NBC rival “Today”; “GMA” mediocred 2.69 million seeers last week, behind “Today’s” 2.83 million mediocre. “Today” anchor Hoda Kotb chooseed to depart, and even though salary was not cited as her reason for leaving, most still saw it as a high-profile example of TV’s novel austerity push when it comes to talent and production costs — especiassociate on lengthy-running franchises appreciate “Today” and “GMA.”
Stephanopoulos’ last increateed deal renovelal was in 2019, when he signed a four-year pact to persist at the netlabor. He postponecessitater extfinished that tight in 2021, inserting novel production duties, including a novel program on politics for Hulu and four hour-lengthy distinctives for primetime, while “World News Tonight’s” David Muir was made guide anchor for ABC News’ distinctive increates and novels of national transport inance.
Stephanopoulos has been with ABC News since 1997, when he unitecessitate the novels outlet as an analyst, follotriumphg a stint as communications straightforwardor in the Clinton White Hoparticipate. He became the arrange of the Sunday uncover-afunpartisans program “This Week” in 2002. In 2009, he unitecessitate “Good Morning America.”
