George Stephanopoulos, ABC agreed to new contract

“Good Morning America” anchor George Stephanopoulos has signed a new deal with ABC News to remain at the network.

The timing of the signing announcement comes just days after ABC agreed to pay $16 million to settle a defamation lawsuit against itself and Stephanopoulos. ABC News denied any connection between the settlement and Stephanopoulos’ deal, according to Deadline.

In fact, sources told the publication that the deal was already agreed to before the settlement decision was made.

After the news of the settlement was made public, there was talk that Stephanopoulos might be on his way out at ABC, but it appears the network is keen to keep him.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed. It was not immediately clear if the new contract still calls for Stephanopoulos to continue to anchor both “GMA” and “This Week” or if he will have any additional duties. 

Stephanopoulos most recently renegotiated his contract with ABC in 2021. 

That earlier deal, which stripped Stephanopoulos of the title of “chief anchor” for the network, meaning he would no longer helm special reports or special coverage — with those duties going to “ABC World News Tonight” anchor David Muir, also included a lucrative production deal.

ABC executives have reportedly been challenged keeping both Muir and Stephanopoulos happy. As anchor of the network’s flagship evening newscast, Muir would traditionally be first to face the cameras for breaking news and major event coverage, but ABC worked out an arrangement that gave Stephanopoulos that responsibility for several years, seemingly as a way to give both anchors a piece of the news pie.

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When taking that away from Stephanopoulos in 2021, ABC offered to fund a production company for him. It has also kept him as primary host of “This Week,” the network’s Sunday morning political affairs show, though he typically anchors from New York and either Martha Raddatz or Jonathan Karl are officially credited as co-hosts of the show and often helm the show solo to give Stephanopoulos some occasional weekends off. 

There have also been reports that Stephanopoulos finds morning the morning shift less glamorous and serious than Muir’s job, sparking talk that there is a rivalry between the two men.

Meanwhile, with “GMA” and “WNT” both performing well in the ratings, network execs are likely hesitant to make any big talent changes.