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Post by Jeremy on Apr 24, 2017 20:14:21 GMT -8
Okay, nothing is official yet, but given that it's recently been authorized, it seems very likely that the WGA will be going on strike next week.
If you remember the 2007 strike, you know what this means: All scripted TV shows, once they finish their currently-produced episodes, will essentially go on hiatus. Given the turnaround rate, we likely won't be noticing many major absences until late summer (excepting late-night shows, which will go on hiatus immediately). That is, assuming the strike goes on that long. (In '07, it spanned over 3 months.)
For the moment, this is all speculative. But there's a very real possibility that some of your favorite shows will be off the air for a while.
Plan accordingly.
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Post by ThirdMan on Apr 24, 2017 22:43:06 GMT -8
Shit, have Fargo and Better Call Saul already produced their third seasons?
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Post by Jeremy on Apr 25, 2017 5:00:26 GMT -8
They have. Cable dramas usually produce the entire season before they start airing it.
A number of summer shows (including OitNb, Game of Thrones, and The Defenders) have also wrapped production, and should proceed as scheduled. But later premieres like Halt and Catch Fire and You're the Worst (not to mention a whole slew of network shows) may end up taking an extended break.
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Post by otherscott on Apr 25, 2017 6:20:45 GMT -8
I'm trying to remember which Fall Shows I care about that will be affected by this and I'm kind of drawing a blank.
There's Jane the Virgin, which is really the only network show I watch regularly. I can't think of anything cable that was slated for a Fall 2017 premiere
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Quiara
Grade School
Posts: 775
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Post by Quiara on Apr 25, 2017 6:31:09 GMT -8
Is this going to be radically different than the 2007 strike? Off the top of my head, I doubt Netflix has any need to negotiate with its writers based on backlog. (Vertical integration-- it's a bitch.)
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Post by Jeremy on Apr 25, 2017 6:51:20 GMT -8
There are some similarities, and some differences. Netflix and other streaming sites have an advantage over the networks, since they still have a huge archive of shows for audiences to fall back on. Still, the writers of Netflix originals are part of the WGA, so shows like Jessica Jones (which is currently producing its second season) may be delayed.
The main difference between this and the 2007 strike is timing. The previous strike occurred during the fall, when most network shows were in-season and midway through production. (As a result, most shows had their episode orders cut short that year.) This time, the strike is threatening to occur in May, at a time when networks are supposed to be producing new pilots for upcoming fall shows. If the writers go on strike, there won't be any new fall shows to pick up.
This is more similar to the 1988 strike, which occurred over the entire summer and forced networks to hold off the fall season until early November.
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Post by ThirdMan on Apr 25, 2017 10:39:40 GMT -8
Well, that's a relief, re: Fargo, BCS, and GoT.
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Post by Jeremy on Apr 30, 2017 19:29:01 GMT -8
Well, the Writers' Guild contract expires tomorrow night. If they don't reach a deal with the AMPTP by then, the strike will go forward.
For now, all we can do is wait...
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Post by Jeremy on May 2, 2017 4:42:36 GMT -8
Update: There will be no strike! A deal was reached at the last minute.
TV is safe (at least, until the new contract runs out in spring 2020).
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Post by buffyholic on May 31, 2017 1:29:01 GMT -8
That´s good news!
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Post by Jeremy on Apr 19, 2020 10:52:49 GMT -8
Welcome to three years later!
So, time for an update: Back in April 2017, when it looked like TV writers everywhere were about to put down pens and pick up signs, Hollywood reached a deal at the last minute, with a new three-year contract designed to stave off WGA complaints through the end of April 2020.
Well, things have not cooled between the WGA and their Hollywood overlords in the time since. The issues that nearly caused the 2017 strike (smaller episode counts and lack of streaming revenues for writers) are more relevant than ever. Furthermore, the WGA had a much-publicized falling out with Hollywood talent agencies last year - due to agents having the ability to collect packaging fees, which writers have no piece of - which culminated in thousands of TV writers firing their talent agents. (If you're on Twitter, you may have noticed #IStandWithWGA popping up about a year ago - now you know why.)
So things are pretty bad right now between our favorite TV writers and their network overlords. And it looked like things were about to come to a head on May 1st, 2020.
HOWEVER. Because of all the recent global pandemic insanity, Hollywood (like the rest of the world) has essentially shut down for the foreseeable future. That means that writers don't have any leverage to strike, since it's not like they're in high demand at the moment. Instead, it looks like the deadline for a new deal will be postponed till the end of June, and negotiations may begin sometime next month. But even that is contingent on the WGA's demand for better health coverage in the wake of coronavirus.
So the threat of another writers' strike is still prevalent; it's just gotten clouded by other issues at the moment.
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Post by Jeremy on Jun 25, 2020 18:41:43 GMT -8
So here's a (possible) good sign - earlier this month, SAG-AFTRA (aka the Screen Actors' Guild, biggest union in Hollywood) reached an agreement with studios for a new contract to benefit actors. The Directors' Guild agreed to a similar contract back in March.
We haven't heard much news from the Writers' Guild yet, but presumably they're still in negotiations - and their contract is set to expire in less than a week. There could still potentially be a writers' strike, but the fact that Hollywood's acting and directing unions have agreed to new contracts is a promising sign. We'll know where this is headed soon enough.
Fun fact, by the way: One of the WGA's chief negotiators in this dispute is Shawn Ryan, creator of The Shield. Is there a chance he used some... Vic Mackey tactics to persuade the studio heads to treat the writers more fairly? I'm kind of thinking there's a chance.
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Post by Jeremy on Jun 29, 2020 10:09:15 GMT -8
Well, the deadline is tomorrow night. Variety reports that negotiations between the WGA and their AMPTP overlords are still going on. Though that's not without precedent - the potential 2017 strike was averted less than an hour before that contract expired. It's interesting that there's been so little media coverage of this, compared to three years ago. Obviously, the pandemic has frozen TV production anyway, but a WGA strike could still have huge ramifications, what with Hollywood hoping to resume film and TV production later this summer.
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Post by Jeremy on Jul 1, 2020 18:56:23 GMT -8
And another writers' strike has been avoided - thanks in part, ironically, to the pandemic. With Hollywood shut down for several months, the WGA's threats to put down their pens didn't sound too threatening. And the high unemployment rates have presumably made the AMPTP more accommodating to working with what they've got.
It sounds like this new deal will have the same three-year duration as the last one - so get ready to do this all again in the summer of 2023!
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Post by Jeremy on Apr 18, 2023 5:09:59 GMT -8
Hello again! I apologize for reviving this very boring thread, but we're coming up on another three-year deadline, and things look kind of grim for Hollywood at the moment. Yesterday, the WGA overwhelmingly voted to approve a strike in case a deal is not met by the end of April (when their current contract expires). If they and their Hollywood overlords don't finagle a deal within the next two weeks, TV and film writers around the country will be putting down their pens. Obviously, a last-minute deal to avert a strike can happen, as happened in 2017. But be prepared.
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