Two of theater’s heavy-hitters are squaring off in a legal battle that could be Broadway’s biggest drama during the pandemic shutdown: Ad agency Spotco is suing producer Scott Rudin for $6.3 million the company says he owes.
Rudin denies the claim, releasing the following statement from lawyer Jonathan Zavin: “The case has no merit and the defendants intend to contest it vigorously.”
In a suit filed Wednesday by Spotco in New York State Court, the ad and marketing firm – one of Broadway’s most prominent since its founding in 1997 – claims Rudin has not paid for work the company provided for eight shows, including the smash To Kill a Mockingbird, the recent revival of West Side Story and the pandemic-postponed The Music Man to star Hugh Jackman.
The dispute, according to the Spotco suit, predates the March 12 Broadway shutdown by six months. The agency says it provided ad and marketing services for various productions by the multiple Tony Award-winning Rudin without a written contract. The suit claims Spotco had an oral agreement with Rudin since around 2014.
The lawsuit was first reported by the website Law360.