‘Seinfeld’ may presage DVD dispute

A threat by cast members of “Seinfeld” not to participate in the planned DVD release of the hit sitcom is shining a light on a looming fight that could take center stage in Hollywood next year.

Booming sales of DVD releases of feature films and television shows have become a financial bright spot for studios and production companies. With profits from a DVD retailing for $16 estimated to average close to $11, writers and actors are starting to ask for a piece of the revenue.

Members of the Writers Guild of America, whose contract expires in May, have already said that DVD revenue will be a top priority in their coming negotiations, according to Daily Variety.

The threat by “Seinfeld” cast members Julia Louis-Dreyfus and Jason Alexander not to provide commentary tracks or promotional support for the DVD release of the show’s first season, tentatively planned for late next year, could be the start of a similar push by actors. Fellow cast member Michael Richards told the New York Times he would participate but would like to be paid.

The principals, including the show’s star and co-creator, Jerry Seinfeld, were away for the holidays and could not be reached for comment.

Seinfeld’s publicist, Elizabeth Clark, said Wednesday that the actor hopes his former co-stars will participate but noted that “Seinfeld and the producers of the ‘Seinfeld’ show [such as co-creator Larry David] are profit participants and do not control the ancillary stream.” Those business decisions, she said, rest with Warner Bros., which owns rights to the series, and Sony Pictures Entertainment, which controls the DVD and video rights.

Actors almost never get paid to participate in DVD extras. Their contributions to commentary tracks and DVD promotions are part of the overall pay they receive for acting in films or series, according to several studio sources. Perhaps the only actor ever to get a substantial payment for providing a commentary track is now-California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who was paid $75,000 for providing commentary on the 2001 DVD of “Total Recall.”