Hollywood has been in a state of emergency for months, and hardly anything is being produced in the dream factory. After reaching an agreement with the studios, the writers have now ended their strike. But normality is still far away.
No films, no series, no award ceremonies: Hollywood has been in a state of emergency since the writers’ strikes started in May. Now the scriptwriters of the US film and television industry have declared their months-long labor dispute over. Today they resume their work.
Members still have to agree
The board of the US authors union Writers Guild of America (WGA) has agreed to a preliminary agreement with the major studios and streaming providers. The writers’ strike, which has been going on for almost five months, will end at midnight US West Coast time, the WGA announced on Twitter successor X. The union’s board voted unanimously in favor.
Now the 11,500 members have to vote at the beginning of October whether they accept the offer. According to the WGA, the new deal is valid until May 2026. The preliminary contract contains, among other things, wage increases, regulations for the use of artificial intelligence (AI) and higher subsidies for retirement and health care.
The WGA board’s vote on Tuesday came on the 148th day of labor disputes. The strike could continue if a majority of union members reject ratification. However, industry experts consider this to be unlikely.
Agreement after marathon meeting
On Sunday, the union announced that there had been an agreement in principle with the studios. “We can say with great pride that this agreement is exceptional – with significant gains and protections for authors across the board,” the letter said. The industry association AMPTP confirmed the agreement. The announcement followed five days of intense negotiations between the union and the studios.
Thousands of film and television screenwriters went on strike at the beginning of May. They demanded better pay, appropriate success fees for writing box office hits and protection against the use of artificial intelligence.
actresses and actors continue to strike
With the end of the writers’ strike, the labor dispute in Hollywood is not yet over. The approximately 160,000 actors from the acting union SAG-AFTRA are still on strike. They joined the writers’ strike in mid-July. The fronts between the producers and the actors’ union have hardened – there have been no talks since the strike began.
The first double strike by actors and screenwriters in the USA in more than 60 years almost brought Hollywood to a standstill. Due to the labor dispute, practically no films and series could be filmed. Due to the strike, actors are also not allowed to advertise their films.
Film releases have been postponed and the awards season has also been affected. The world’s most important television award, the Emmy – originally scheduled for mid-September – will now not be awarded until January 2024. The “Governors Award” gala with the awarding of honorary Oscars, initially planned for November, was also postponed until January. According to the “Financial Times”, the double strike in Hollywood has already caused losses of more than five billion US dollars, or around 4.7 billion euros.