“Price is Right” drama to showcase models' 'fight for their rights' against Bob Barker, producer says
“Price is Right” drama to showcase models' 'fight for their rights' against Bob Barker, producer says
Ryan ColemanWed, April 8, 2026 at 10:59 PM UTC
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From L-R: Dian Parkinson, Holly Hallstrom, Bob Barker, and Janice Pennington on 'The Price is Right'Credit: Courtesy Everett
The dark side of The Price Is Right is getting the scripted treatment.
Production company The Gotham Group is developing a new project based on David Kushner's bombshell 2024 report for Business Insider exposing iconic host Bob Barker's private dark side and the on-screen models who fought him behind the scenes.
That story has already been developed into the the E! docuseries Dirty Rotten Scandals: The Price is Right, but now will be going scripted. That's according to Gotham Group producer Eric Robinson, who spoke with Entertainment Weekly on Wednesday.
"We had actually been talking to David about doing something with his brilliant piece" before Dirty Rotten Scandals dropped, Robinson says. But where that series did a "fantastic job" doing an "exposé on Bob Barker," the Gotham folks are "interested in telling the story of these amazing women, and their strength at a time when that was not something that was usual."
Hallstrom in Las Vegas in 1996Credit: Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty
The as-yet untitled Price is Right project also differs from Dirty Rotten Scandals in being scripted, though it has yet to be determined whether it will take shape as a series or feature film.
Kushner is attached to the Gotham project as he was to Dirty Rotten Scandals. He will assist the production company behind films like the Maze Runner trilogy and series like Percy Jackson and the Olympians in shining a light on what Robinson describes as an "incredible story to be told of these amazing women who bonded together when nobody would listen to them, of their fight for their rights. [They] fought for their truth to be heard against some very powerful figures."
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Indeed, Kushner's reporting uncovered shocking allegations of manipulation, obstruction, sexual harassment, and racism, many of them pointing directly to Barker, who died in 2023 at the age of 99.
The lion's share of those allegations came from the so-called "Barker's Beauties," or models who presented the game show's prizes to the audience and contestants. Among the most disturbing, former models Kathleen Bradley and Claudia Jordan allege they experienced near-constant racism from fans, producers, and Barker himself.
Holly Hallstrom, who led the charge to tell the Beauties' side of the story to the world, claimed in Dirty Rotten Scandals that Barker "always said that Black men are the most diseased people on Earth." Several former models also alleged numerous instances of sexual harassment and abuse, and Hallstrom claimed a producer pressured her into undergoing cosmetic surgery for the show.
In March, Roger Dobkowitz, who co-produced The Price is Right for 36 years, called Dirty Rotten Scandals "an obvious hit piece" in an effort to "defend the dignity and integrity of our great show."
Barker hosting 'The Price is Right' in 2004Credit: Amanda Edwards/Getty
"This was very, very, very pre-#MeToo," Robinson explains, pointing to the feminist movement founded by Tarana Burke that went viral in 2017, calling on survivors of sexual assault, harassment, and discrimination to speak out publicly. "To have each other's backs against the powers that be at that time, it's an inspirational story."
As for taking on a "longstanding tower of pop culture fandom like Barker," Robinson suspects that "his defenders will say he was a product of his time, but these women have been very vocal and on-the-record, and very upfront about their experiences."
The Gotham Price is Right project is still in early development and working on arranging relationships with the show's survivors. "There's a really human story to be told here," Robinson says, "about the flaws of a man, but also about overcoming adversity."
on Entertainment Weekly
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
