AMC: No More Mad Men Til 2012

Shut the door and have a seat, Mad Men fans, because we’ve got some bad news: Thanks to tense negotiations between AMC and show creator Matthew Weiner, Season 5 will be pushed back from this summer to early 2012. AMC today announced that it had exercised its option with series producer Lionsgate to officially greenlight a new season, but that it would be delayed by “key non-cast negotiations.”

Weiner is expected to sign a two-year contract worth nearly $30 million, making him the highest-paid showrunner on basic cable. But talks remain deadlocked, sources tell Deadline Hollywood, because AMC and Lionsgate are asking Weiner to put product placements in the show, shave 2 minutes off each episode to allow more time for commercials, and fire two regular cast members to save money, all of which Weiner refuses to do. (More Mad Men stories.)