MTV chiefs are cracking down on the money-grabbing "Jersey Shore" stars' lucrative personal appearances that are netting them up to $7,500 a night.
They've ordered the cast -- including Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi, Mike "The Situation" Sorrentino, "Pauly D" Delvecchio and Jenni "JWoww" Farley -- to rein in their appearances at clubs and bars or face strict fines or even legal action.
But sources say certain cast members are blatantly ignoring the rules and pushing to rake in as much money as possible -- despite having all signed $180,000 contracts to film a second season this summer.
A source close to the cast told us, "MTV has told the 'Jersey Shore' crew they can only do two personal appearances a week, and that all of their gigs have to be approved by producers. They've threatened the cast that they will be fined if they flout the rules -- but some don't care and are blatantly going ahead to earn as much cash as they possibly can."
A second source told us MTV honchos fear the show's "brand" could turn to trash if the cast continues "pimping themselves" at the current rate. The source said, "We have to put in controls to protect the brand. We don't want them out all over the map at every single bar in the country.
"They have to get permission from MTV prior to doing a personal appearance -- we don't want one of these kids appearing in a topless bar. Pauly D's fan base is about 85 percent women between 12 and 21, we have to protect that."
Michael Schweiger, who manages the cast members except Snooki, confirmed, "We're incredibly busy. It's a hell of a ride right now. This is something like America hasn't seen before as far as reality TV goes. Rather than let it run like a train out of control, there has to be some rules put in place."
MTV did not get back to us.
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