A "Sopranos" Sit-Down

Sunday nights suddenly seem a little less bleak as HBO and James Gandolfini re-enter negotiations to begin production on the fifth season of Mafia drama The Sopranos.

Last week, the future of the series looked uncertain as both sides refused to retract their big guns over the salary dispute. But the turf war could soon be resolved thanks to producer Brad Grey, who acted as a peacekeeping emissary between the feuding parties over the weekend.

Monday night it was revealed that Gandolfini's attorney Martin Singer had withdrawn the actor's breach-of-contract suit, encouraging salary negotiations. According to network brass a new production date is expected to be announced soon.

"Marty Singer has filed a submission for dismissal of their lawsuit, we're waiting to see that officially in hand, once we get that we then want to get a reaffirmation from Gandolfini that he is coming back to work under the terms of his original contract," said HBO spokesman Quentin Schaffer, adding, "Once we get that obviously a production date could be locked in, they've likely lost a week now so it will probably be March 31."

"Obviously if Gandolfini's back at work our lawsuit then that we filed would probably be tossed out because that was all about honoring his contract," added the spokesman.

HBO originally refused to negotiate with the TV tough guy until the actor withdrew his breach-of-contract suit.

A last minute intervention by Grey, who also lists professional talent manager on his résumé, appears to have eased tensions.

The prolific TV and film producer began talking with Gandolfini and his reps on Thursday, with discussions continuing on Friday and throughout the weekend, working to find a solution to the out-of-control pissing contest between the thespian and the cable net.

At the heart of the dispute is money--millions more than Tony has stashed in his birdseed bin. Last season Gandolfini earned approximately $5 million, or $400,000 an episode, much less than his broadcast counterparts. Accordingly, the actor was hoping for a fourfold salary increase to approximately $21 million.

When HBO made him an offer of $11 million for the upcoming season, Gandolfini refused and filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit, claiming the network missed a deadline to let him know when production on the fifth season would begin.

The move, a bid to muscle more money out of the network, didn't sit well with HBO executives, who slapped a $100 million countersuit on their star player and accused him of blackmail.

Negotiations were subsequently broken off, and HBO suspended production on the show's fifth season, sending letters to the remaining cast members, who've remained conspicuously silent, advising them not to show up for work on March 24, when filming was to begin.

HBO's unwillingness to negotiate and Gandolfini's refusal to withdraw his suit shocked Industry observers. The Sopranos is the network's best earner, pulling in the net's highest ratings during the show's fourth season--if the series were canceled HBO could stand to lose millions in syndication fees and DVD sales.

For his part, Gandolfini could stand to lose the role that put him on the map (no matter how good you think he was in True Romance or Get Shorty) plus a still lucrative salary. Meanwhile, fans would be left hanging after last season's stunning finale in which Carmela kicked a cheatin' Tony to the curb.

However, with the retraction of his lawsuit Gandolfini, who included a half-hearted apology to the network during his SAG Awards acceptance speech, appears ready to make a deal. The actor has reportedly lowered his demands to $16 million per season.

Details about Gandolfini's new paycheck were not released.

While aggravating to expectant fans the production delay shouldn't cause major concerns since the cable network isn't held to the same timetable as broadcast television. "Unlike network we don't have to have the show delivered for a September airing. There's a lot of flexibility," an HBO spokesperson told E! Online last week. "In terms of production, we'd still be able to get it on air in a reasonable amount of time."

(Originally published March 17, 2003, at 10:00 a.m. PT.)