11:15 am - 09/19/2012
Seven-year-old pageant contestant Alana Thompson and her self-proclaimed "redneck" family are in talks to return to TLC for a second season of the hit reality series.
The show -- which follows the daily life of the Georgia-based clan, which includes bobbing for pig feet, flatulence jokes and extreme couponing -- has become a ratings sensation for the network, with more than 2.1 million viewers tuning into its Sept. 13 episode. The show even topped all individual cable and network broadcasts of the Republican National Convention on Aug. 19 with a 1.3 rating with adults 18-49.
According to a source, the Shannon-Thompson family is currently in negotiations with the network and producers to film a second season of the controversial show, which was spun off from TLC’s popular series Toddlers & Tiaras after Thompson's interview clips earned more than 5 million viewers on YouTube.
A source says the cast -- including Alana’s 17-year-old sister, who recently gave birth to her first child -- is now asking for a $10,000-an-episode payday; however, another insider suggests the family will most likely land closer to an $8,000-an-episode salary after negotiations with the network conclude (that would double their season one salary of $4,000 an episode and a possible built-in location fee, as The Hollywood Reporter first reported). The show's six-episode first season ends with a one-hour season finale Sept. 26.
A TLC rep declined to comment on a possible second season or salaries. Discovery Communications president Eileen O’Neill tells THR that a second season of the series is likely, but no final decision has been made.
Source - THR
Honey Boo Boo Seeking Big Pay Increase for Season 2
Seven-year-old pageant contestant Alana Thompson and her self-proclaimed "redneck" family are in talks to return to TLC for a second season of the hit reality series.
The show -- which follows the daily life of the Georgia-based clan, which includes bobbing for pig feet, flatulence jokes and extreme couponing -- has become a ratings sensation for the network, with more than 2.1 million viewers tuning into its Sept. 13 episode. The show even topped all individual cable and network broadcasts of the Republican National Convention on Aug. 19 with a 1.3 rating with adults 18-49.
According to a source, the Shannon-Thompson family is currently in negotiations with the network and producers to film a second season of the controversial show, which was spun off from TLC’s popular series Toddlers & Tiaras after Thompson's interview clips earned more than 5 million viewers on YouTube.
A source says the cast -- including Alana’s 17-year-old sister, who recently gave birth to her first child -- is now asking for a $10,000-an-episode payday; however, another insider suggests the family will most likely land closer to an $8,000-an-episode salary after negotiations with the network conclude (that would double their season one salary of $4,000 an episode and a possible built-in location fee, as The Hollywood Reporter first reported). The show's six-episode first season ends with a one-hour season finale Sept. 26.
A TLC rep declined to comment on a possible second season or salaries. Discovery Communications president Eileen O’Neill tells THR that a second season of the series is likely, but no final decision has been made.
Source - THR
Edited at 2012-09-19 04:23 pm (UTC)
I love the show, but they're trash
The fact is, very few people can have it all, the perfect childhood and life without any tradeoffs. Some have parents who have to work very long hours, giving them little parental support and guidance, in order to afford to put food on the table. In this case, a child has to deal with the potential drawbacks of fame and notoriety in order to have a shot at a good future. A shot that her parents are clearly trying to give her, since reports say that they are not spending the money from the show, but have instead put it all into savings for the girls.
I don't disagree that being the ridiculed star of a reality show can have a negative impact on a child. But I do disagree that a parent is doing a bad job when they weight the negatives and pick that risk over the near certainty that their child will have no decent future whatsoever.
I'm not saying that they're SHITTY parents for making money this way, but at the same time making the decision to have so many kids with so few resources that you have to sell your youngest as a product does not make them good.
As for them making a poor decision to have so many kids - first of all, I think they can provide for their children just fine. They clearly are not lacking for food, shelter or love. What they do lack for is opportunity - opportunity for a better life, a better education, and a better career. It is a common problem facing the poor and uneducated. But I don't think that means that they shouldn't be able to have as many children as they can love and capably support. Having one child versus 3 would not have changed the fact that this family would never have been able to afford college for that child, would never have been able to provide her with a proper education including sex education (which the parents clearly did not have themselves), would never have been able to expose her to much of the world beyond their own tiny community. Having less children would not have been able to change the opportunities they could offer. This show does.