Prospect Park Amends Disney Soap Lawsuit to The Tune of More Than $95 Million
Prospect Park has ramped up their lawsuit against ABC Disney to the tune of $95 million, The Hollywood Reported claimed Wednesday.
Prospect Park, which resurrected canceled ABC soap operas One Life to Live and All My Children earlier this year, filed new paperwork in their ongoing suit against ABC. In May, a lawsuit was filed against ABC alleging fraud. In the new documents, they alleged that the network sought to undermine their efforts because of their desire to create a "mega soap".
Prospect Park said in their updated briefings that ABC realized the mistake it had made in canceling AMC and OLTL from their line up after they purchased the licensing. In return, ABC sought to undermine their efforts when the soaps returned to an online format in April of this year. Allegedly, ABC defrauded PP by convincing them to borrow certain characters for the sole ABC soap opera, General Hospital for a limited time.
However, the plaintiffs alleged that "even before the ink dried on the parties' agreement, ABC began unilaterally changing key storylines and themes, literally killing some OLTL characters and deeply integrating others into the GH landscape, all to create a mega soap of GH behind Prospect Park's back."
Moreover, the filing contended that ABC conspired to convince actors against returning to their roles on AMC and OLTL. The complaint stated "ABC even went so far as to induce the actors who had been playing some of the more popular characters on OLTL to sign secret, exclusive, multiyear contracts with ABC -- all without a word to Prospect Park."
Furthermore, the suit alleged that ABC Disney interfered with Prospect Park advertising on the network. They are now seeking to recoup damages and the future of both soaps returning is undecided. Both have been shelved at the moment.
"As a consequence of ABC's fraud and its multiple breaches of both the express terms of the parties' contract and the implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing included in every contract in this state, Prospect Park has sustained the loss of its investment of over $30 million, as well as the profits that it stood to make had ABC acted as the partner it had held itself out to be," the suit stated.