Chuck Norris Defeats CBS In Walker Texas Ranger Legal Battle
Deadline reported that Chuck Norris and CBS have settled their dispute over Walker, Texas Ranger profits over five years after Norris filed his initial suit. While Norris initially filed the suit for around $30 million, both parties are remaining mum on the final number that Norris received in the confidential settlement, but Deadline reported they heard it was a “healthy sum.”
CBS has settled out of court with Chuck Norris for his 5 year old lawsuit over allegedly unpaid profits to the star for an undisclosed but “healthy” sum.
While Sony Pictures TV was a defendant in the 2018 suit, the studio was dismissed from the lawsuit earlier this year.
Chuck Norris and CBS engaged in arbitration to settle the suit over the past five years, with Norris’ Top Kick Productions making the claim that Sony and CBS engaged in “self-dealing,” causing Top Kick to miss out on millions in past and future licensing fees.
The series has been estimated to make around $692 million since it first debuted in 1993. Top Kick also claimed that the network and studio were in breach of the 23 Percent Profit Clause.
In his complaint Chuck Norris claimed that the reason CBS picked up Walker, Texas Ranger initially was in part due to his reputation. His $30 million suit was also to regain some profits from the money Sony and the network made from the show’s streaming revenue, which is especially relevant with the current WGA and SAG-AFTRA unions fighting for better streaming residuals, amongst other issues.
With the settlement agreement finally reached, Norris and his team filed to dismiss the suit with prejudice, and the matter was sewn up for good.
Walker, Texas Ranger starred Chuck Norris as a member of the Texas Ranger Division, who uses his martial arts and code of conduct to mete out justice in each episode. The show was created by Paul Haggis, Leslie Greif, Chis Canaan, and Al Ruddy and ran on CBS from 1993 to 2001.
The series would also get a movie titled Walker, Texas Ranger: Trial by Fire, along with a short-lived spin-off show titled Sons of Thunder. Walker was a massive ratings success and ranked among the Top 25 shows from 1995 until 1999 and ranked in the Top 20 in both the 1995–1996 and 1998–1999 seasons in the Nielsen ratings.
Although Chuck Norris is no longer involved, CBS Studios recently revived the franchise and brought it to the CW with the 2021 reboot Walker. Jared Padalecki takes over the titular role, and the series takes a more serialized approach to storytelling than the original. Walker has three seasons under its belt currently, and it was renewed for a fourth season in May.
Chuck Norris’ Walker, Texas Ranger clearly has a lasting legacy, considering there was even a spin-off of Walker greenlit by CBS Studios titled Walker: Independence, which was a prequel series starring Katherine McNamara as Cordell Walker’s ancestor. While the show got good reviews, it was canceled after its first season.
In any case, it seems like Chuck Norris can walk away from the franchise happy after the CBS settlement and let the young actors take over for a new generation. You can stream Walker, Texas Ranger on Peacock, while the more recent Walker can be streamed on Max.
