Dr. Phil McGraw was accused of committing a massive fraud against the world's largest Christian television network, according to a new report.
The Daily Beast reported Tuesday that McGraw, who goes by the stage name Dr. Phil on his eponymous TV show, "overpromised and underdelivered" in a more than $500 million contract that he struck with Trinity Broadcast Network after leaving CBS in 2023. The report cites a complaint filed in a federal bankruptcy court in Texas.
According to the complaint, McGraw's production company "reiterated numerous representations related to the then-current advertising revenue, product integrations, production costs, and viewership of the Dr. Phil Show.”
McGraw then allegedly used the false figures to convince Trinity Broadcasting Network to pay him $20 million up front and $50 million a year for a decade to produce 160 new episodes of "Dr. Phil," The Daily Beast reported.
The new episodes, which were supposed to be 90 minutes in length, never arrived, according to the lawsuit.
The complaint also alleges that McGraw did not give Trinity Broadcasting Network the rights to the "Dr. Phil" library. Instead, he tried to force the company to pay him $100 million for a 50% interest in the content.
A spokesperson for McGraw denied the claims in a statement to The Hollywood Reporter.