The Writers Guild of America and the studios have reached an agreement and avoided a strike that would have put our favorite shows in jeopardy.
It looked like another writer’s strike was on the horizon, but according to Deadline Hollywood late night negotiations proved fruitful and an agreement was hashed out.
This means that shows currently in production can take a breath because they won’t be halted by the strike.
The strike would have been particularly hard on shows that still haven’t gotten onto the air. Shows like CBS’ already very troubled Star Trek: Discovery didn’t need another hurdle to cross. Veteran shows would, of course, have survived, but if production is stopped on an unproven show there’s no guarantee that it will ever start up again.
The other big loser would have been late night shows which need writers every single day. The last time a writers strike happened the late night shows suffered the most.
Some of the main points of contention between the WGA and the studios were a new health plan and parental leave. Here’s the statement released by the WGA:
"May 2, 2017Dear Colleagues–Your Negotiating Committee is pleased to report that we have reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP that we can recommend for ratification.In it, we made gains in minimums across the board – as well as contribution increases to our Health Plan that should ensure its solvency for years to come. And we further expanded our protections in Options and Exclusivity.We also made unprecedented gains on the issue of short seasons in television, winning a definition (which has never before existed in our MBA) of 2.4 weeks of work for each episodic fee. Any work beyond that span will now require additional payment for hundreds of writer-producers.More from Show SnobThe Santa Clauses season 2, episode 6 recap “Wanga Banga Langa!”Lawmen: Bass Reeves season 1, episode 7 preview: Non-spoiler thoughts for Part VIIGoosebumps season 1, episode 6 recap: “Night of the Living Dummy”Beacon 23 season 1, episode 3 recap: “Why Can’t We Go on as Three?”Upload season 3, episode 2 recap: “Strawberry”We won a 15% increase in Pay TV residuals, roughly $15 million in increases in High-Budget SVOD residuals, and, for the first time ever, residuals for comedy-variety writers in Pay TV.And, also for the first time ever, job protection on Parental Leave.Did we get everything we wanted? No. Everything we deserve? Certainly not. But because we had the near-unanimous backing of you and your fellow writers, we were able to achieve a deal that will net this Guild’s members $130 million more, over the life of the contract, than the pattern we were expected to accept.That result, and that resolve, is a testament to you, your courage, and your faith in us as your representatives.We will, of course, provide more details in the next few days. But until then, we just wanted to thank you – and congratulate you. Your voices were indeed heard."
Don’t get too comfortable though, the studios now have to strike a new deal with the Screen Actors Guild. You can read more about this at Deadline Hollywood.
What do you think? Are you glad that a writers strike has been avoided? Let us know in the comments below.