More on the Spin-off……

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Francie from ‘Alias’ pops up in ‘Grey’s’ spinoff Merrin Dungey has been cast in the two-hour “Grey’s Anatomy” spinoff, according to ABC. Dungey will play a character called “Naomi.”

Dungey will be familiar to “Alias” fans; the actress played Francie, the best friend (and sometime nemesis) of Sydney Bristow (Jennifer Garner). Dungey has also been spotted on “Summerland,” “Boston Legal” and “The King of Queens,” among other shows.

Also in the cast of the “Grey’s” spinoff are Chicago’s own Paul Adelstein (much more on that here), as well as Tim Daly, Taye Diggs and “Veronica Mars’” Chris Lowell. The star of the new spinoff, the pilot of which will serve as “Grey’s” Season 3 finale, is former Chicagoan Kate Walsh, who plays neonatal surgeon Addison Montgomery.

According to news reports, the two other female characters in the “Grey’s” spinoff, which begins filming this week, are a psychiatrist and a fertility specialist. It’s not clear which of those characters Dungey will play.
University Park native Shonda Rhimes, as well as Mark Gordon and Betsy Beers, are the executive producers on the so-far-unnamed spinoff.  Rhimes wrote the spinoff pilot, which has Montgomery contemplating a departure from Seattle Grace Hospital.

UPDATE: TV Guide’s Michael Ausiello reports that Amy Brenneman (“Judging Amy”) has also joined the cast of the “Grey’s” spinoff.
Photo: Merrin Dungey.

Grey’s cast cashes in….

Pay rise…Cast members of Grey’s Anatomy settled a pay dispute with their employer and will be paid more for past and future shows. / The Sunday Telegraph

 Grey’s Anatomy cast cashes in

March 11, 2007 12:00

Article from:

 

THE pay dispute that threatened production of one of the world’s most popular TV shows has been resolved.

A number of Grey’s Anatomy castmates settled their pay claims yesterday, and most were handsomely rewarded, according to industry reports.

Series namesake Ellen Pompeo was the best compensated of the lot, signing a new contract that will see her rake in roughly $US200,000 ($A256,150) per episode.

Co-stars T.R. Knight, Justin Chambers, James T. Pickens Jr. and Chandra Wilson fared almost as well, with each now set to receive $US125,000 per episode.

The news comes in the wake of the ABC hit’s Golden Globe win for Best TV Drama and the cast earning a SAG Award for Best Ensemble in a Drama Series.

The pay rises are reportedly retroactive, meaning that the actors will also receive a major one-time payout compensating for the difference between what they were making and what they will be making per episode, dating back to this season’s premiere.

While each of the cast members was already under seven-year contracts, it is typical for actors on breakout hits to renegotiate after the second season.

Grey’s Anatomy is in its third season.

Sandra Oh, Patrick Dempsey, Katherine Heigl and Isaiah Washington are still either negotiating pay rises or are happy with their current deals.

Pay Raise for “Grey’s Anatomy” Stars

Mar 12, 2007 11:59 AM

Pay Raise for “Grey’s Anatomy” Stars

Daily Entertainment Photos – “Get all the fashion, glamour and scandal here in pictures!”

The cast of the hit TV medical drama Grey’s Anatomy has been given a huge pay raise.

The show’s star, bride-to-be Ellen Pompeo, has closed a new deal that will earn her almost $200,000-per-episode, according to trade paper The Hollywood Reporter, while cast mates Chandra Wilson and James Hickens Jr. have secured raises to $125,000.

Producers are close to securing similar deals with cast members Justin Chambers and T.R. Knight.

The pay increases come a week after details of a salary dispute between ABC bosses and Grey’s Anatomy star Katherine Heigl were leaked to the press.

Heigl, Sandra Oh, Isaiah Washington and Patrick Dempsey are among those still negotiating new deals