No one is aware of the precise actuality that Bravo’s largest stars face daily, not less than in line with attorneys for a “important quantity” of still-unnamed actuality solid and crew members. Earlier this month, they have been getting ready to sue NBCUniversal (which owns Bravo and E!) for the “grotesque and wicked mistreatment” they are saying they’ve skilled on set. A letter threatening authorized motion towards the community from attorneys Bryan Freedman and Mark Geragos—reportedly retained by Real Housewives alum Bethenny Frankel in a push for her actuality star union—particularly alleges that the solid and crew members have been “mentally, bodily, and financially victimized by NBC and threatened with smash ought to they determine to talk out about their mistreatment.”
The subsequent step, then, can be to elevate the strict NDAs that block stars from voicing the complete extent of their allegations. “We are left with the inescapable conclusion that NBC and its manufacturing companions are grappling with systemic rot for which daylight is the primary crucial remedial measure,” writes Freedman in a letter to NBCUniversal’s normal counsel, obtained by The Hollywood Reporter and dated August 20. “To date, that has been unattainable owing to the draconian phrases of NBC’s contracts with its solid and crew, which comprise onerous confidentiality provisions coupled with ruinous penalties for breach.”
Further, the attorneys argue that the NDAs are unenforceable as a result of the agreements fail to incorporate required language beneath California legislation. In the state, an settlement can’t forestall “discussing or disclosing details about illegal acts within the office, corresponding to harassment or discrimination or every other conduct that you’ve got cause to imagine is illegal.”
The letter additionally calls upon NBCUniversal to observe its personal instance from the #MeToo motion. “NBCUniversal has two selections: lead by instance or be pressured into compliance,” Freedman writes. “In 2019, NBC News voluntarily launched its workers from the nondisclosure agreements that had prevented them from sharing their experiences of sexual harassment and discrimination. This request isn’t any completely different. We belief that NBCUniversal will do the correct factor.”
