by: James A. Barnes

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike of 2023 represents a significant interruption to American television and film production and is the largest labor stoppage performed by the WGA since the 2007–08 strike. With the WGA representing about 11,500 writers, the strike is the biggest disruption to the entertainment industry since the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.

Key Issues in the Strike

The strike, which began on May 2, 2023, was instigated by the expiration of the latest Minimum Basic Agreement (MBA), a collective bargaining agreement covering most of the work done by WGA writers. The MBA established a minimum wage for television and film writers, although it only applied to writers for broadcast television shows, not for streaming television. This led to pay discrepancies, with writers for streaming shows often earning less for the same amount of work.

A central point of contention in the labor dispute is the residuals from streaming media. The WGA contends that the share of residuals offered by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) has considerably reduced the average income of writers compared to a decade ago. The WGA also sought assurances that artificial intelligence, like ChatGPT, would only be used as a research or ideation tool, and not as a tool to replace writers.

The WGA's proposals would yield about $429 million a year for writers, compared to the AMPTP's offer of $86 million. Other disputed issues include the WGA's demand for "mandatory staffing" and "duration of employment" terms to be added to their contract, requiring all shows to be staffed with a minimum number of writers for a certain amount of time. The WGA is also advocating for each member of a writing team to receive their own pension and health care funds, a proposal rejected by the AMPTP.

Impact on Television and Film Production

The strike is having a significant impact on a range of television genres. Late-night shows, such as “Jimmy Fallon,” “Jimmy Kimmel,” “Stephen Colbert,” “The Daily Show,” “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver,” and “Saturday Night Live,” have shut down production due to their reliance on a tight, topical writing schedule. Other shows, including “Stranger Things,” “Yellowjackets,” “Severance,” “Cobra Kai,” and “Daredevil: Born Again", have also ceased production.

Network TV shows have also been affected, with shows like NBC’s “Night Court,” CBS’s “Evil,” Starz’s “The Venery of Samantha Bird,” and “Power Book III: Raising Kanan” closing their writers’ rooms. Several major network TV shows have wrapped for the summer, but if the strike extends as it did in 2007–08, it could affect the preparation time for these shows' fall return.

Daytime soap operas have a stockpile of episodes filmed in advance, so they are less immediately impacted. However, “The Young and the Restless” will likely be the first to pause, with less than a month of episodes remaining.

The impact on streaming platforms is uncertain, with Netflix's “Emily in Paris” reportedly delaying production due to the strike.

Conclusion

The 2023 WGA strike represents a major disruption in the entertainment industry and a significant labor dispute. With key issues around residuals from streaming media, the use of artificial intelligence, and terms of employment still unresolved, the strike continues to have wide-ranging effects on television and film production.

Stay tuned for updates…