'Sopranos' Hits A Low Note

(AP)  HBO has suspended filming of "The Sopranos" due to a contract dispute with the show's star, James Gandolfini, newspapers said.

Network executives told cast members that work on the fifth season of the hit show about a New Jersey mob family has been postponed indefinitely, the Daily News and the New York Post reported in Thursday editions. Filming had been scheduled to begin on March 24.

Gandolfini, who plays mob boss Tony Soprano, is reportedly seeking upward of $1 million an episode, while HBO has offered $800,000. Gandolfini currently earns about $400,000 an episode.

"Every year he asked for a raise," HBO lawyer Bert Fields told the Daily News. "They didn't have to pay a dime more than they did last time. They offered him a huge raise."

But Dan Klores, a spokesman for Gandolfini, said the actor is asking for what he deserves.

"When you start referring to an actor who has made a network an inordinate amount of money as 'a greedy pig' and you publicly accuse him of blackmail, you make yourself look stupid," Klores told the Daily News. "He doesn't deserve to be treated with anything but respect."

Last week, Gandolfini, who plays mob boss Tony Soprano, filed a Superior Court complaint claiming that HBO breached his contract. The actor alleged that HBO missed a deadline for advising him that his services would be needed for a fifth season.

On Tuesday, HBO fired back at Gandolfini in court, saying the actor must settle his contract dispute or risk being liable for more than $100 million in damages.