Latest Hollywood strike talks lead to ‘mixed results’

On By sam-rubin

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Writers have been on strike since May, which is when many students were finishing up their final semester of the school year.

Now that the new school year has started for some, will we be talking about this when these same kids take their Thanksgiving break?

That may not be the case, as talks have continued between the studios and the writers.

The Writers Guild of America has two branches, the WGA West and the WGA East.

The head of the WGA East was here in Los Angeles, and some say that indicates that talks are getting more involved and more serious.

Those in Tuesday’s meeting described it as a conversation that yielded “mixed results,” according to Deadline.

Members of the Writers Guild of America, WGA picket outside CBS Television City in the Fairfax District of Los Angeles Tuesday, May 2, 2023. The first Hollywood strike in 15 years began Tuesday as the economic pressures of the streaming era prompted unionized TV and film writers to picket for better pay outside major studios, a work stoppage that already is leading most late-night shows to air reruns. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

One WGA observer described negotiations as that of a volleyball game, as different proposals were sent back and forth, meaning progress can take a very long time.

With the strike continuing, studios and streamers are reporting earnings and trying to make projections for the rest of the year.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, below-the-line workers, which consist of the crews and supporting staff that have been out of work for months, are suffering now, though many corporations won’t feel the pinch unless the strike drags on for months longer.

“If it settles today, then it’s going to really have almost no impact,” says Michael Pachter, managing director at Wedbush Securities told the outlet. “If it drags on for two to three more months, it’ll have some impact. If it drags on for a year, it will have a devastating impact.”

In the midst of the official news blackout from the negotiations, no one really is speaking on the record at the moment.

However, one writer offers this caution.

“Until @ellenstutzman descends from the heavens radiant in her puissance or alternatively rises from her dark domain, her dread command manifest upon her brow — depending which raiment of power she has donned that day — and tells you there is a deal, DO. NOT. BELIEVE. IT.,” John Rogers posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, who is a television writer.

Stutzman is the chief negotiator for WGA, who is from the WGA West.

The writers have been on strike since May 2, while members of SAG-AFTRA have been on strike since mid-July.

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