It's Day 15 of the Writers Guild of America strike. And it’s clear it is shaking up the fall television season, still months away.
Each spring, major networks, cable channels and streaming services host elaborate presentations called the “upfronts,” where they preview new and returning shows for advertisers. Billions of dollars of commercial time are sold over the course of several days.
Separately, the Tony Awards have canceled their live broadcast in June on CBS and Paramount Plus. The ceremony’s producers had asked the WGA for a waiver that would have allowed guild writers to script the show, but the WGA declined the request. It’s unclear what form the annual Broadway awards show will now take.
Meanwhile, in an ongoing display of inventive protest signs, a group of strikers in L.A. raised more than $2,000 to fly a plane with a carefully worded banner over the city's movie studios and streaming HQs.
Hollywood producers released a statement on May 4 that addressed specific points of the WGA's concerns. Among the issues addressed by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers were:
In a statement released the night before the strike, the WGA said:
"Over the course of the negotiation, we explained how the companies' business practices have slashed our compensation and residuals and undermined our working conditions. Our chief negotiator, as well as writers on the committee, made clear to the studios’ labor representatives that we are determined to achieve a new contract with fair pay that reflects the value of our contribution to company success and includes protections to ensure that writing survives as a sustainable profession."
The WGA says that most of its nearly 12,000 members are making less than they once did, and that after factoring for inflation, average WGA pay has actually dropped 14% over the last five years.
The union says about half of WGA members are earning scale — the bare minimum wages stipulated by the contract with the AMPTP. Ten years ago, it was only a third.
Executives at studios and streamers maintain that they are still recovering from pandemic losses and have spent billions of dollars creating and buying content for new streaming platforms, some of which are far from profitable.
For Hollywood executives, the stakes are high: if the AMPTP deal for writers increases pay and residual payments, their profit margins could shrink. Furthermore, other Hollywood unions would likely use any WGA gains as the template for their demands; contracts for the Screen Actors Guild and the Directors Guild of America both expire in the coming weeks.
John Horn, who covers arts and entertainment, has been following negotiations closely. Josie Huang talked to picketers and local businesses affected by the strike. In addition, our AirTalk team has featured the strike in on-air discussions on LAist 89.3 and LAist coverage.
Our podcasts HTLA and Retake have also talked to writers and others affected by the strike.
This is a developing story. We fact check everything and rely only on information from credible sources (think fire, police, government officials and reporters on the ground). Sometimes, however, we make mistakes and/or initial reports turn out to be wrong. In all cases, we strive to bring you the most accurate information in real time and will update this story as new information becomes available.
