Mike Rowe has hit Discovery with a lawsuit claiming that he is owed millions for his narration of Deadliest Catch.
The television personality claims that he is owed over $2 million, and that the company has not paid him properly for the narration he provided for the show.
“Rowe, 64, and his production company Lab Rat filed a lawsuit against Discovery Talent Services on Wednesday, July 1, in which he claimed the company breached its contract. The complaint alleges that the company refused to honor the ‘pay-or-play’ agreement for his involvement in the Deadliest Catch and its spinoffs,” People Magazine reported. “Rowe has narrated the reality series since 2005. According to the lawsuit, he and DTS made an agreement in 2020, in which he would get $40,000 per episode. He is to narrate the series; if he does not, he is to be compensated for the episodes he does not narrate, his lawyers claim in the filing.”
The company reportedly did not have him narrate 5 episodes of season 21, the filing alleges.
“Lab Rat and Rowe have also learned that the episodes of the original Deadliest Catch series that are aired internationally are materially different than the episodes aired in the United States,” the lawsuit further claims. “To the extent any of these international episodes are determined to be ‘originally produced episodes,’ the pay-or-play agreement would apply to those as well.”
“Because DTS exercised its choice not to use Rowe as a Narrator in at least 51 episodes of Deadliest Catch spinoffs, Lab Rat is entitled to payment of at least $2.04 million….” the filing continues, adding that he may be entitled to compensation or “additional payments for 12 longer episodes,” including interest. The team is requesting a jury trial on the matter.
Rowe has sued Discovery in the past as well, claiming he was never paid residuals after Deadliest Catch was put on streaming platforms.
At the time, a spokesperson for the company said they value the “long-standing relationship with Rowe and have fulfilled our contractual obligations for royalty payments.”
“We dispute the allegations and will defend ourselves against these claims,” they added.
X users reacted:
Mike Rowe’s voice is almost on par with the late great Rush Limbaugh’s. Pay the man, Discovery!
— MrMarcG (@MisterMarcG) July 6, 2026
@mikeroweworks is the best ‘voice guy’ off all-time. Sorry, Orson Wells, David Attenborough, Morgan Freeman, John Facenda, et al…Mike Rowe is the greatest. Not to mention, his philanthropic work and dedication to Country. I hope Discovery does the right thing.
— Frank Gipp (@Frank_Gipp) July 6, 2026
Discevery is nothing but garbage.
— OutsideThinker (@Outsidethinker) July 6, 2026
I hope he gets all he’s owed with interest.
— MARLA (@SharkGoddess) July 1, 2026
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Sierra Marlee is a millennial whose hunger for the truth in a world of fake news has led her to write. Marlee also contributes to BizPac Review.
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