Judge blocks move of “Project Runway” to Lifetime
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Heidi is having a bad week. First William Shatner rips her clothes off, then Tom Bergeron drops her on the floor, and now this!
A New York judge on Friday clipped the wings of ‘Project Runway,’ by issuing a temporary injunction that prevents the producers from moving the popular cable TV show to Lifetime Networks from Bravo. NBC claimed that Weinstein breached their contract by not giving it right of first refusal before jumping the show to another company.
Earlier this year, show producer Harvey Weinstein negotiated a deal to move the show, hosted by Heidi Klum, to Lifetime Networks. NBC Universal, which owns Bravo, and which has been home to the show for five seasons, immediately sued Weinstein to block the move.
‘NBC Universal is pleased that the court granted our motion for a preliminary injunction against The Weinstein Company,’ said NBC in a statement. ‘The overwhelming evidence demonstrated that The Weinstein Company violated NBC Universal’s right of first refusal to future cycles of ‘Project Runway.’
Lifetime, in a statement, said it was ‘disappointed with the court’s decision,’ noting that the show’s ‘loyal fans’ are the ‘people hurt most by this ongoing dispute.’ The cable network avers it will ‘pursue all measures to uphold its valid and binding agreements’ with Weinstein.
-- Meg James
