"Buffy Battle Gets Uglier"
Source: Zap2it.com
URL: http://tv.zap2it.com/news/tvnewsdaily.html?16525
Date: 03.20.01
LOS ANGELES (Zap2it.com) - "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" creator Joss Whedon claims that Jamie Kellner, the WB's chief executive, has insulted his show and he's ready to take his marbles to play elsewhere, according to New York's Daily News.
Earlier this year, Whedon and the show's producers at 20th Century Fox requested that the network pay $2 million per episode, double what they were currently being given. The WB offered $1.6 million, but said anymore and they would start losing money.
Kellner told Entertainment Weekly that the show doesn't appeal to a wide audience, saying, "It's not our No. 1 show. It's not a show like 'ER' that stands above the pack."
Whedon argues that the show has earned a loyal fan base in its five years on the WB, attracting mostly viewers in their 20s. "It makes me angry to see this show belittled," says Whedon. "For Jamie Kellner to call it a teen show and dismiss his own product angers me. It doesn't breed love."