11-06-2024
Former casting director Penny Perry filed a lawsuit against the Hallmark Channel for age discrimination in Los Angeles. The 79-year-old claims the channel fired her after seven years because of her age.
The lawsuit alleges, “Hallmark’s happy endings are stories made for TV only.” Perry claims the vice president of programming made ageist remarks, like telling her not to cast “old people” for roles and that “our leading ladies are aging out.” This VP purportedly mentioned Hallmark actors Lacey Chabert, 42, and Holly Robinson Peete, 60, as part of her discriminatory remarks. She allegedly said Chabert is "getting older, and we have to find someone like her to replace her as she gets older." Regarding Peete, the female VP said, “No one wants her because she’s too expensive and getting too old. She can’t play leading roles anymore.” Perry claims the VP said Perry was getting "long in the tooth." Hallmark purportedly gradually excluded Perry from important meetings and decisions. Ultimately, the network offered Perry a demotion with a 50% pay cut. When Perry asked for time to think about it, Hallmark allegedly fired her. She saw a job posting for a position nearly identical to hers not long after. Perry also includes claims of disability discrimination based on her multiple sclerosis and legal blindness in one eye. These disabilities caused Perry balance issues and reduced mobility. She alleged Hallmark did not accommodate these issues.
Hallmark denied the “outrageous allegations” and asserted that “Lacey and Holly have a home at Hallmark.” Representatives for Chabert and Peete did not provide comments to the media.