Nellie Andreeva

Like before any other cycle of MTV’s Jersey Shore, there has been speculation that several stars, including Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, Jenni “JWoww” Farley and Paul “DJ Pauly D” Delvecchio, are holding off on signing contracts in pursuit of more money. “We do have deals with all Jersey Shore cast members, and we are looking to begin production next month,” MTV’s EVP of programming and head of production Chris Linn said. He also dismissed rumors that production on the upcoming Season 4 of Jersey Shore in Italy has been delayed. “We are on schedule,” he said, adding that the producers are working on appropriate housing and accommodation for the cast, something that is expected to be be finalized soon.

Expanding MTV’s red-hot Jersey Shore franchise with two spinoff series was one of the first major moves for Linn since his recent promotion following the departure of Tony DiSanto. With Jersey Shore churning out two cycles a year and the two spinoff series — the Snooki-JWoww project and the DJ Pauly D project, premiering in 2012 — there will be at least four seasons of Jersey Shore-branded series on MTV next season. Isn’t that too much?

“We feel this is just right,” Linn said. “The cast continues to surprise all of us with their strong following. They reveal new sides of themselves, leading to us expanding the franchise in new directions, focusing on what lives they lead away from the shore.” He stressed that there was no politics in picking Snooki, JWoww and Pauly to headline their own shows vs. the other Jersey Shore cast members. “We feel all of the cast members are breakout stars, and they all have much more to offer” Linn said. “These are just the projects that came together the quickest.” He said talks are under way with other cast members about potential new projects, Jersey Shore spinoffs or other types of reality series.

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