Hollywood Writers to Strike After Talks Break Down
4 min read 02 May 2023, 05:59 PM IST Late-night and variety shows likely to be first to feel effects of walkout
PremiumThe keypads have gone silent in Hollywood.
The union representing movie and television writers said Monday night that they were going on strike after talks with the major Hollywood studios, streamers and networks concluded without a new deal.
The deadline to come to terms on a new contract was Monday night.
The Writers Guild of America, which has a membership of 11,500, said that offers from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the group that represents studios, streamers and networks, have been “wholly insufficient" and that this negotiation has shown their commitment “to further devaluing the profession of writing."
The AMPTP said Monday that it presented a package to the WGA that “included generous increases in compensation for writers as well as improvements in streaming residuals," two key issues for the writers.
The coalition of content purveyors went on to say it would be willing to improve on those proposals but wouldn’t yet “because of the magnitude of other proposals still on the table." Among those cited by the AMPTP is WGA’s demand that each TV show be required to carry a minimum number of writers for a specific length of time, “whether needed or not."
The WGA said the unwillingness to negotiate on those matters shows that entertainment-industry companies are trying to turn writing into a gig economy where writers are freelancer workers with no job security or protection.
No future talks are currently scheduled, both sides said.
Many of the issues dividing the two sides are tied to the growth of streaming platforms, which have veered away from the traditional business model of producing television.
Historically, a television show is developed through a process in which a script is ordered and then a trial episode or “pilot" is made. If the show is ordered then, the writers start mapping out a season, writing scripts and working on the show through all facets of production.
Nowadays, many shows are developed with multiple scripts or even a full season mapped out before they are ordered, a practice pioneered by Netflix. When a show is ordered and goes into production, typically fewer writers are kept on board.
Writers and executive producers say having fewer writers during production and postproduction puts onus on the remaining writers and is a detriment to the creative process.
Chris Keyser, co-chair of the WGA’s negotiating team, said recently that this is an example of the industry “reducing our pay and pulling us out of the process of making our television shows."
The companies that comprise the AMPTP counter that the business of making content is changing rapidly and that their models must change, too. Several including Walt Disney Co., Warner Bros. Discovery, Comcast’s NBCUniversal and Paramount Global have been cutting staff and budgets for movies and television. Even Netflix has said it will become more aggressive in monitoring content costs.
There are also issues regarding moviemaking, including a demand from the WGA that writing compensation and residual terms for feature films are standardized regardless of whether a movie is released theatrically or on a streaming service.
Artificial intelligence was also a part of the talks with the WGA seeking to regulate the use of AI-generated material in television and movies.
With a strike, late-night and variety shows will be first to feel the effects. In a letter to Wall Street analysts and media investors, the WGA warned that shows such as ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live," NBC’s “Saturday Night Live" and other talk shows, including HBO’s “Real Time with Bill Maher," would likely go dark without writers.
In the last strike in 2007-08, the late-night shows stood in solidarity with writers until eventually coming back and trying to make do without anyone to write their jokes and skits.
Should a strike drag on through the rest of spring and into summer, the fall television for the broadcast networks could also be delayed. Netflix and other streaming and premium-cable channels typically make content far in advance, as do movie studios, so it might be a while before there is any impact there.
Writers aren’t the only labor challenge facing Hollywood’s content makers. Talks start next week between AMPTP and the union representing directors, and in June the actors guild will commence negotiations on a new deal.