CAA Settles TV Writer’s Blacklisting Lawsuit for $500,000 Ahead of Trial
CAA settled its lawsuit with television writer John Musero, who accused the agency of placing him on an “underperforming” blacklist last year, ahead of a scheduled trial this week.
On Monday, the legal team for Musero submitted their notice of settlement to the superior court of Los Angeles. The document states that the matter will be dismissed upon the satisfactory completion of specified terms, which weren’t outlined in the document, within 45 days. Musero was initially suing the agency for $25 million; an individual with knowledge of the settlement told TheWrap the settlement came in at $500,000.
“We are glad to finally move on from this meritless lawsuit, which produced no finding of wrongdoing by CAA and was resolved for what amounts to nuisance value,” a spokesperson for CAA told TheWrap.
Musero, a former staff writer for HBO and Aaron Sorkin’s “The Newsroom,” sued the agency in June 2025 after failing to prove in a separate claim that the company stole the premise of his pilot, “Main Justice,” a show set inside the U.S. Attorney General’s office. He called the move at the time a “whistleblower moment for every artist” currently or previously affiliated with the talent agency.
Musero first accused CAA of stealing his pilot idea, which the agency optioned, in 2019. He also claimed that he was put on a list of “underperforming writers” in 2016 and that CAA hid from him that he was in danger of being dropped. In April 2024, Musero alleged breach of fiduciary duty and confidentiality, breach of contract and breach of implied covenant of good faith and fair dealing. Additionally, Musero said his agents stopped actively representing him and his best interests.
“CAA secretly blacklists its own clients while leading them to believe it is continuing to represent their interests. This case confirms what has been suspected by many in the industry for years,” Musero said previously in a June 2025 statement on the matter. “What’s clear is that CAA clients — and Guild members — may have had their careers harmed or killed, unbeknownst to them.”
A judge ruled in June 2025 to narrow Musero’s claim, finding that the pilot idea wasn’t stolen but that there’s a chance the agency blacklisted him.
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