The Writers Guild of America (WGA) and major Hollywood studios have tentatively reached an agreement to potentially end a strike that has lasted over 140 days. This strike has caused significant job losses and has highlighted concerns about the impact of technological changes on the industry.
The proposed three-year contract, still subject to approval by the union’s 11,500 members, includes increased pay rates and residuals for streaming shows, as well as new regulations regarding the use of artificial intelligence. The strike, which began on May 2, was initiated to secure protections against threats to writers’ livelihoods posed by shifts in the streaming industry and other changes.
Now that a tentative agreement with the WGA is in place, industry leaders are expected to focus on resolving the strike involving the 160,000-member performers union, SAG-AFTRA, in an effort to resume normal industry operations. Actors have been on strike since mid-July. Both strikes have had a significant impact on crew members who showed solidarity by making financial sacrifices, and small businesses reliant on the entertainment industry have also suffered as a result.
The writers’ strike largely stemmed from the seismic shifts brought about by the rise of streaming platforms. Guild members have pointed out that the trend toward shorter seasons for streaming shows and a reduced demand for writers have had adverse effects on their income and job security. This has made it increasingly challenging for them to maintain a viable livelihood in the costly media hubs of Los Angeles and New York.
During negotiations, the studios faced their own unique challenges. The pay-TV industry was in decline due to cord-cutting and declining TV ratings, which resulted in decreased revenue streams. Simultaneously, traditional companies had made substantial investments in launching competitive streaming services to rival Netflix, incurring substantial financial losses in the process.
The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers represents a diverse group of companies, including entertainment-focused ones like Netflix, traditional studios such as Warner Bros. Discovery and Walt Disney Co., as well as tech giants like Apple and Amazon.
The strike, which was one of the longest in Hollywood’s history, saw sporadic progress until recent days when company CEOs actively participated in negotiations. Both sides returned to the bargaining table on Wednesday, marking the first negotiations since August 22.
Substantial headway has been achieved in recent weeks during the negotiation meetings, and this progress is likely linked to the involvement of four prominent executives: David Zaslav from Warner Bros. Discovery, Bob Iger from Disney, Donna Langley from NBCUniversal, and Ted Sarandos from Netflix.
Since May 2, close to 20,000 writers have faced unemployment and a lack of income, with negotiations between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, representing the studios, coming to a halt during the summer months.
In a statement posted on X Sunday night, officials with the WGA said:
“The WGA and AMPTP have reached a tentative agreement. This was made possible by the enduring solidarity of WGA members and extraordinary support of our union siblings who stood with us for over 146 days. More details coming after contract language is finalized.”
On May 2, the WGA initiated its strike, and on July 14, the Screen Actors Guild joined them in striking. This marked the first instance in over six decades where both unions have simultaneously gone on strike.
Striking writers have had disagreements with producers on various matters, including increased residual pay, transparency regarding viewership data from streaming services, the size of writing teams for TV shows, and the use of artificial intelligence in script creation.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass expressed her support for the recent tentative agreement reached between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers after a nearly five-month-long strike. She hopes for a similar resolution soon with the Screen Actors Guild but notes that discussions haven’t yet resumed with their union.
Actors from SAG-AFTRA are still in the midst of negotiations with AMPTP while they continue their strike.
The WGA strike was approaching a historic duration. If it had persisted until September 30th, it would have surpassed all previous strikes in the union’s history and become the lengthiest labor dispute in Hollywood since 1945.
(Source: Associated Press | Marc Sternfield | Vivian Chow | Josh DuBose | KTLA 5 | Wendy Lee | Meg James | The Los Angeles Times)
