‘Incredibly Proud Of Us’ — Hollywood Strikers React To The Tentative WGA Agreement

With Hollywood writers seemingly close to finalizing a deal with studios and streamers to end the nearly five-month strike, many in L.A.'s entertainment industry are hoping for a swift end to the stalemate that’s kept so many Angelenos out of work.

WGA member Jorge Rivera said he’s going to remain cautious of the news until the ink is dry, but that he and other writers are feeling pretty good.

“Our negotiating committee is such a smart and reliable group of people that I doubt highly that they would announce even a tentative agreement unless they thought it was a good deal and thought that it was going to get approved,” Rivera told LAist.

A group photo of the WGA negotiating committee circulated on social media Sunday, with many writers thanking and congratulating the group.

“I’m just incredibly proud of us all,” said Rivera, who serves as vice chair of the Latinx Writers Guild Committee and helped organize a joint picket last month. “Even though we all suffered a bit and had anxiety and financial insecurity and some people had food insecurity and housing insecurity, despite all that anxiety we were very much in solidarity with each other [and] the energy on the picket lines was incredible,” he said.

Rivera also said he and other writers would remain in solidarity with SAG-AFTRA members as they continue to pursue an agreement, as well as IATSE members when their contract is up next year.

“The union stood strong together and now hopefully now that the writers have their deal they’ll stick around with us actors on the picket lines, too,” actor John C. Reilly told AirTalk’s Larry Mantle on Monday.

Susanna Dooley Boney, an IATSE art department coordinator and propmaker, heard the news from a WGA member at a cafe in Elysian Valley. Boney said the woman, who was sitting at a nearby table, jumped up and down and showed off the email from the negotiating committee.

They high-fived to celebrate, but Boney said she’s feeling a mix of joy and sadness. She will return to work on a MAX show the second the strikes are officially settled, but she’ll miss the time she’s been able to spend with her family.

“I know it sounds silly, but I’ll also miss picketing,” Boney said. “The picket lines were actually quite fun, positive and electrifying. Everyone was there. Old bosses, friends, people I hadn’t seen in a decade.”

Boney added that the picket lines have been a great networking opportunity for people who want to be in the WGA. She says she’s glad her colleagues are getting a fair deal, and she’s hopeful that when the IATSE contract is up soon, they’ll be able to negotiate in their footsteps.

Becky Stark and John C. Reilly.

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Kim Santi

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“All that actors and writers are asking for is to share in the profits of their success, which the heads of these companies reward themselves very well for their success,” Reilly added. “So we’re just looking for some kind of parity in that way and we’re at the tip of the spear for the labor movement in the country actually, right now.”

SAG-AFTRA members have until 5 p.m. Monday to vote on whether to authorize a video game strike. With the authorization, the union could expand the strike to work included under the Interactive (Video Game) Media Agreement, which is a separate contract. A yes vote from members doesn’t ensure a strike, but allows the union to have “a member-approved strike authorization in hand when bargaining resumes on Sept. 26,” SAG-AFTRA said.

“I think it’s tentatively terrific,” WGA member Walton Dornisch said, reacting to the news of the possible deal.

A member of the writers guild since 1992, Dornisch said the execution of the updated contract would be what really matters in the coming days and months.

Dornisch also echoed the support for SAG-AFTRA members as they continue to push for their strike-ending deal: “SAG-AFTRA membership has shown up in huge numbers for the WGA and now the WGA needs to support SAG-AFTRA as much as they supported us.”