Mike Rowe Seeks Millions In Lawsuit Against Discovery After Allegedly Not Being Paid
on Jul 06, 2026
You know his face from Dirty Jobs, and plenty of other shows, but his voice is just about as iconic as he is…
Mike Rowe, 64, has a voice tailor-made for narration, and that’s part of why he’s been narrating the series Deadliest Catch since 2005.
Beyond his voice, Rowe is a known advocate of working hard, challenging the idea of “work smarter, not harder” by encouraging young adults to “work smart AND hard.”
In keeping with that spirit, Rowe is now alleging that some of his work has gone without compensation, so he’s filed a lawsuit asking for $2.04 million in damages.
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About Mike Rowe’s Lawsuit Against Discovery
Filed on July 1, PEOPLE reports that Mike Rowe and his production company, Lab Rat, are suing Discovery Talent Services.
In total, they are seeking $2.04 million, alleging that Discovery has not met the terms of is “pay-or-play” contract with Rowe that was signed in 2020.
The terms of that contract, Rowe says, were that each episode he narrated would earn him $40,000.
Further, for episodes he does not narrate, he is to receive compensation. The amount of that pay for work not done was not noted by PEOPLE.
The New York Post quotes the lawsuit, which alleges, “Because [Discovery] exercised its choice not to use Rowe as a Narrator in at least 51 episodes of ‘Deadliest Catch’ spinoffs, Lab Rat is entitled to a payment of at least $2.04 million.”
There are about five spinoffs to the Deadliest Catch, including Deadliest Catch: Dungeon Cove (2016) and Deadliest Catch: The Viking Returns (2022) — all of which are narrated by Rowe.
Next year, Deadliest Catch: Northern Edge is slated to debut, but it does not feature Rowe’s voice.
Further, PEOPLE goes on to cite the lawsuit, which claims:
“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. 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.”
Rowe previously sued Discovery in 2025, arguing that he did not receive residuals for his work on the network’s series when they were added to streaming platforms.
That lawsuit remains up in the air, with a representative of Discovery telling The Hollywood Reporter, “We value our 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.”
This is a developing story.
Watch the late Charlie Kirk interview Mike Rowe in 2024, here:
