Don Johnson Collects $19 Million in ‘Nash Bridges’ Settlement

Don Johnson, known for his heartthrob role in ’80s crime drama series Miami Vice, has finally settled his lawsuit against the company that co-produced his series Nash Bridges — an absurd TV cop drama that starred Johnson (and Cheech!) and ran for six seasons (1996-2001) on CBS.

Johnson claimed co-producer Rysher Entertainment stiffed him out of his 50 percent copyright interest in the show. After two years of court dates and appeals, Defendants Rysher Entertainment paid Johnson $19 million to avoid dragging out the case further.

This case has not been easy. In 2010, Johnson thought he had won big when he scored a big $50 million courtroom victory in his lawsuit against Rysher Entertainment. Unfortunately for the TV cop, Rysher followed suite with an appeal that cut the award to $15 million. This tit for tat continued for over two years as Johnson and Rysher continued to appeal their case.

According to court documents submitted to the Los Angeles Superior Court, the legal scuffle has finally come to an end. Rysher Entertainment has officially wire-transferred $19 million directly to Johnson’s production company.

It’s hard to believe that “Nash Bridges” ever even grossed $19 million…..but its syndication was sold for a whopping 150 million. The irreverent 90s fashion and hairstyles of “Nash Bridges” currently air in Serbia, the Middle East, Denmark and Australia.

This has not been the only triumph for the Don Johnson this year as he landed the role of Big Daddy in Quentin Tarantino’s Django Unchained.

Check out Johnson and a fine example of colorful ’90s fashion in this Nash Bridges clip.