"Jersey Shore" star Paul "DJ Pauly D" DelVecchio is being sued by International Creative Management, which claims it is owed a chunk of DelVecchio's "Jersey Shore" pay -- and as the lawsuit points out, that's a boatload of money.
The suit, filed in Los Angeles Superior Court on Thursday, claims that DelVecchio and his company, Blowout Enterprises, entered into a representation agreement in January 2010 -- shortly after "Jersey Shore" premiered on MTV.
According to ICM, the agency negotiated increasingly large fees for DelVecchio as the popularity of "Jersey Shore" ballooned, in exchange for 10 percent of DelVecchio's gross compensation. The suit says that the agreement worked out until season 4 of the show, when DelVecchio stopped paying the commission, the suit alleges.
And given the numbers involved, that commission adds up to a pretty penny.
The suit claims that, for Season 4 of "Jersey Shore," Pauly D's compensation was $100,000 for each of the 12 episodes, plus a $400,000 signing bonus, adding up to a cool $1.6 million -- and that's not including compensation for after-shows, a launch special, reunion show, merchandising and other compensation. (According to the complaint, DelVecchio received $200,000 as a "thank you" bonus for Season 4.)
And it gets even richer. ICM claims that for the upcoming Season 6 of "Jersey Shore," DelVecchio will rake in $175,000 for each of 12 episodes -- making for a total of $2.1 million. And again, that's not including after-shows, etc.
DelVecchio's lawyer, Hillary H. Hughes, contends that the "Jersey Shore" star owes ICM nothing, and accuses ICM of trying to "take advantage" of its former association with Pauly D.
"We are surprised by ICM’s contention that it is due commissions after ICM was terminated in favor of William Morris Endeavor," Hughes said in a statement provided to TheWrap. "ICM was paid for its services. It is even more disappointing that an agency like ICM would choose to take advantage of its former relationship with a client and disclose his confidential business affairs to the public in disregard of any duties it owes as a talent agency."
The suit says that DelVecchio and ICM parted ways in May 2011, but that ICM is still due a 10 percent commission on any deals it put in play.
According to ICM, DelVecchio owes the agency $370,703.73 in back commission for Seasons 4 and 5, plus 10 percent of whatever DelVecchio takes in from Season 6.
The suit also calls for a written accounting of DelVecchio's compensation, pre-judgment interest, costs of the suit, and "such other and further relief as the Court may deem just and proper."
Pamela Chelin contributed to this report.
