Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly are set to sign a £40 million deal with ITV.
Ant McPartlin and Declan Donnelly
The TV presenting duo have reportedly been offered the three-year deal, which could increase to £50 million if they choose to extend it, by ITV because the station is worried that Amazon will try to poach them.
A source told The Sun on Sunday: "With their current golden handcuffs deal up for renewal, other broadcasters have been sniffing around -- most notably Amazon who still have a lot of cash to splash.
"There was talk of them getting their own series on the streaming giant. ITV are desperate to prevent this and have come in with a new, big, big money, three-year deal.
"Ant and Dec are unquestionably ITV's most prized assets.
"They consistently come out top in internal audience feedback polls and their star quality has not waned in over 20 years.
"In a time of flux for the TV world, when younger viewers are switching off in their droves, it's vital that stations hold on to their big-draw names.
"Their current contract is £30million and is now going up to at least £40million -- with scope to extend it in length and take the pay up to as high as £50million."
The new ITV deal comes after Ant and Dec announced a "car fanatics" show for BBC Two.
The Geordie duo are the creative brains behind 'Street Car Showdown', which will see teams compete by turning old cars into racing motors.
However, due to their contracts with ITV, the pair won't be appearing on the programme, which is inspired by their youth.
In a statement, the pair said: "We have been fascinated with this world since we were teenagers in the North East and experienced car modders meeting up on Roker seafront in Sunderland to show off their creations.
"We came up with the format to shine a light onto the untapped world of car fanatics and highlight their passion, talent and creativity.
"We are great admirers of the team at Studio Lambert and are thrilled to be partnering with them on this project."