Comedian Dave Chappelle has inked a huge deal with Comedy Central. The Hollywood Reporter has reported that the deal could be worth around $50 million which would make Chappelle one of television’s biggest players. The deal will mean that “Chappelle’s Show” will be on for at least two more seasons. Sources have stated that the new contract is a financial leap for Chappelle and also contains a back-end deal that will reward him with a large chunk of the series’ DVD sales. Chappelle is star, writer, co-executive producer and co-creator of the show.

Interest from other channels including NBC led Comedy Central to make this deal now. Comedy Central is part of Viacom and part of the contract includes a multimillion-dollar deal with Paramount to star in an adaptation of Rick James life, among other projects. This deal represents one of the richest arrangements in basic cable. Chappelle is vacationing in Paris and did not comment. “Chappelle’s Show” and “The Daily Show with Jon Stewart” are two of the strongest shows on Comedy Central. “It means a great deal to our schedule,” said Lauren Corrao, senior VP of original programming and head of development. “We’re thrilled to have him back.”