All three Masterchef Australia judges quit in pay dispute

July 23, 2019 by
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Masterchef Australia will be getting an extreme makeover in 2020, as all three of its current judges have quit amidst a pay dispute. Matt Preston, Gary Mehigan and George Calombaris, all walked away from the program after Australia’s Network 10 refused to increase their pay by 40 percent. 

masterchef judges

This is not the first time Calombaris has made the news regarding a row over pay. He was recently embroiled in controversy following revelations that his restaurant empire  underpaid staff by AU$7.8 million ($8.1m USD). The dispute regarding Masterchef salaries is unrelated to this issue, according to the network. 

Who will replace the show’s long time hosts is up in the air. Network CEO Paul Anderson says all options are on the table, from guest stars like Maggie Beer or Curtis Stone to ‘home-grown’ talent from the fields of contestants developed over Masterchef’s 11-year run. “We’ve had these amazing cooks that have come through the ranks, from Julie Goodwin to Poh Ling Yeow, and that speaks volumes for what this franchise has done not only for cooking in this country, but the talent it’s developed,” he said. 

Category: Food Biz People

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3 Comments

  • kestypes  on  July 24, 2019

    Calombaris is copping a lot of ridicule over this. BTW, those figures are the wrong way round. 7.1m AUD is 4.95m USD.

  • KarinaFrancis  on  July 25, 2019

    I'm a long standing fan of the show, but since the George Calombaris saga has hit the press I've found it so hard and distasteful to watch the show with him in it (more so than when he licks his knife when tasting food). Its a shame that all 3 have left, but there is a wealth of talent here in Australia and it could be what the franchise needs to propel it forward.

  • Atomizer  on  August 6, 2019

    I went to the Press Club in October and I do find it hard to watch George commentating on other peoples food when his own was so poor. Having said that the three of them make the show for me and I don't think it will be the same, very sad. May they will get Pete & Manu in !!!!

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