Why have thousands of Hollywood film and TV writers gone on strike?

Meanwhile, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) — a trade association that negotiates on behalf of studios, television networks and streaming platforms — claimed that it offered “generous increases in compensation for writers as well as improvements in streaming residuals.”

This is Hollywood’s first strike in fifteen years. The 2007 strike happened due to an impasse with AMPTP over writers’ salaries and other issues, as per NBC, and lasted 100 days.

I’m in the Writers Guild of America. I wish this wasn’t happening and support it absolutely. When I wake up tomorrow I’ll be on strike. (To forestall the inevitable questions, Good Omens 2 is completed and handed in. Although I may not be able to promote it as I had hoped.) https://t.co/sc64H4bm5E

— Neil Gaiman (@neilhimself) May 2, 2023

Why have Hollywood writers gone on strike?

Although the advent of the streaming era has been a boon for television, it has severely hit writers’ income in different ways.

Writers of streaming shows make less money to begin with as these shows usually have shorter seasons in comparison to traditional TV shows. Moreover, these shows employ fewer writers than were on staff in the past, which has led to fewer opportunities for writers to earn their living.

Also, they no longer “can rely on a steady stream of residual income they used to get in the days of broadcast TV, when successful shows lived on for years in syndicated reruns or the once-lucrative home video market,” Los Angeles Times said.

A recent WGA survey found that the median weekly pay for writer-producers declined 23 per cent over the last decade when adjusting for inflation. It also revealed that when accounting for inflation, screenwriter pay dipped by 14 per cent in the last five years.

Last year, 8 Hollywood CEOs made nearly $800 million, yet pay for TV writers has fallen by 23 percent over the last 10 years. I stand with the nearly 12,000 @WGAWest writers on strike for a fair contract.

— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) May 2, 2023

As a result, the union is demanding compensation and other improvements such as a hike in minimum pay, residuals for streaming and more contributions to the WGA health and pension plan.

Writers also seek to curtail the prevalence of so-called “mini rooms” — where small groups of writers are hired to work on a show before it is given the green light, replacing the traditional practice of producing pilot episodes which were used to gauge a show’s potential. As per The Guardian, studios prefer mini rooms because it gives them “a better sense of what a show might be before committing”, but writers end up working more for less money on shows that may never be made.

Notably, the WGA also seeks to restrict the use of artificial intelligence in writing film and television scripts, Reuters reported.

On the other hand, AMPTP — representing studios such as Disney, Universal Pictures and Warner Bros.; broadcast television networks, like ABC and CBS; and streaming services, including Netflix, Disney+ and Amazon — has said that it wants to reach a fair deal.

“The AMPTP member companies remain united in their desire to reach a deal that is mutually beneficial to writers and the health and longevity of the industry, and to avoid hardship to the thousands of employees who depend upon the industry for their livelihoods,” the organisation said, as per NBC reported. “The AMPTP is willing to engage in discussions with the WGA in an effort to break this logjam.”

NBC reported that one of the main reasons why the negotiations have failed is that the WGA is asking companies to staff television shows with a certain number of writers for a specific period of time, “whether needed or not” — a demand that AMPTP is reluctant to accept.

How will the strike disrupt tv production?

According to the WGA-issued regulations, members taking part in this strike can’t write, revise, pitch or negotiate with the more than 350 television and film companies in the AMPTP. This will have an immediate impact on the US’s late-night shows such as “Saturday Night Live” and series, like “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon”, “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert” and “Jimmy Kimmel Live!”, which are set to go dark.

The strike will also affect soap operas, which are “traditionally written not long before they are filmed”, a report published by The Guardian said.

For now, seasons of major streaming and television series will remain uninterrupted as “their episodes are all likely written and filmed already.,” the report added. However, if the strike goes on for more than two weeks, it might impact “network television season which encompasses 45% of episodes made by companies like Disney, Paramount and Comcast NBCUniversal, as writers usually begin to work around now on the big series that usually premiere in the US fall.”

The flow of movies released in theatres will not be affected as films take two to three years to produce. But a prolonged strike will definitely upend movie release schedules.

How long can the strike last?

Right now, it’s tough to give a definitive answer. According to the media reports, the two negotiating parties don’t seem to come to an agreement any time soon. Historically speaking, such strikes have lasted for weeks in Hollywood. The longest WGA strike was in 1988 and lasted 153 days.

As mentioned before, the last Hollywood strike, which took place in 2007, went on for 100 days. It resulted in the loss of $2 billion to California’s economy, leading to many cancelled or delayed shows. The BBC reported that the strike also led to the rise of reality TV shows, where WGA writers aren’t required.