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Ok, really random question/ request to start this newsy off with, but do any of you live in AND are residents of Portugal???? If you tick these boxes and think you could do Bel and me a MASSIVE solid (and therefore become our besties) pleeeease respond to this email!!!!
PS, Bel and I are recording a Culture Vulture ep for you today all about the Hollywood writer’s strike, and it was so fascinating that I wrote you a whole newsy on it today. Hope that’s cool! Love you! 𓆩♡𓆪
The Hollywood Writers’ Strike, Explained
The WGA (Writers Guild of America) Strike - you’ve probably heard about it, but you might not fully understand it - so I’m here to help!
Last week, after six weeks of negotiations, Hollywood’s screenwriters went on strike. Why? Well… it’s kinda complicated (as we’ll get into), but in a nutshell:
“The rise of streaming services has dramatically changed the way the industry operates, and the people who write our favorite TV shows and movies have gotten squeezed in the process. Making a career as a writer of movies and television was always tough, but incomes are not keeping pace with inflation — meanwhile, studios are reaping more and more profit, while the workers essential to their profits struggle to get by.”
The last time screenwriters went on strike was 15 years ago. It lasted 100 days and cost $2.1 billion to California’s economy alone. It caused production to stop on MANY iconic TV shows, including The Office (where Steve Carell continuously called out sick with a case of "enlarged balls"); late-night programs to start ‘killing time on air’ in order to show how important their writers are (Conan O’Brien challenged himself to beat his personal record for the longest continuous spin of his wedding ring on his desk); and Family Guy (which would have been my fave show 15 years ago probs) was taken over by Fox for three episodes withough any input or approval from its creators when series creator Seth MacFarlane supported the strike.
[Luce note: did I use the semicolon correctly in that sentence or not?]
Now, 15 years later, writers are striking again. To some, it might seem super confusing as to why, because with all these ‘new’ streaming services it feels like there is more work than ever going on in Hollywood (if you’re looking at the number of new shows we’re seeing all the time), but that’s not the case. In fact, the streaming services are a huge chunk of the problem.
Here are some reasons why it’s getting harder and harder to make a living as a writer on some of our favourite shows:
Studios and streamers are looking to ‘cut costs on labour’ after a shit financial year in 2022, but a bunch of that that ‘labour’ has been writers’ work.
With the rise of streaming, seasons have become far shorter than their ‘broadcast cousins.’ Where a season used to be 22 or more episodes (I’m looking at you The OC) they’re now about 8-10 which means writers are getting less work/money for each job.
Space between seasons is growing, which means writers are jobless for longer.
Writers are getting barely any residual payments anymore (think… royalties that they get from the shows they worked on.) Before streaming, whenever a show was licensed, or got an international deal, or sold DVDs (remember them?) writers would get a cut! Now streaming services just pay fixed residuals that aren’t tied to viewer numbers, and there are no additional payments when the shows move to other platforms.
The median pay for movie screenwriters hasn’t gone up since 2018 (so with inflashe that means it’s declined by 14%)
‘Mini-rooms’ are another one of the things that writers are super sick of. These are essentially writers' rooms but with fewer writers, who are contracted for short periods of time to write several scripts. They’re developing scripts for series that are not officially ordered, so the studios don’t pay them as much as if they were in a large, traditional writing room (and if the show does get picked up, fewer writers are sometimes hired because the blueprints have already been created.)
These types of rooms have also been known to end before the production of the show is completed. For example, for the series Beef, the mini-room had ended before the finale was filmed so the creator of the show was left to finish the series alone. This is also why you’ll hear writers say that you should have writers on set for re-writes etc during production too! Their job doesn’t end in that room!
And then there’s the whole AI thing. Writers want to know that their creativity is going to be safe amidst the rise of generative AI. They want companies to “agree to guarantee that artificial intelligence will not encroach on writers’ credits and compensation.”
They also want to ensure that their jobs will not turn into them simply ‘editing scripts written by ChatGPT’ or having their work used as training data for AI.
But don’t worry everyone! These requests have been met with the suggestion of an “annual meeting to talk about the advances in this tech” (sarcasm.)
In response to all of this, studios have said very little, but they have released their own summary of the negotiations:
“they characterized hiring minimums as a “quota that is incompatible with the creative nature of our industry” and noted that the writers have “substantial fringe benefits” that separate them from gig workers. But the studios’ rhetoric makes it clear that, in their ideal world, writers wouldn’t even have the benefits and guarantees they currently possess. WGA negotiators reported that AMPTP President Carol Lombardini told them, “Writers are lucky to have term employment.”
Some shows that have been or will be affected by the strike:
Stranger Things: The creators of the show, The Duffer Brothers, tweeted: “Duffers here. Writing does not stop when filming begins. While we’re excited to start production with our amazing cast and crew, it is not possible during this strike. We hope a fair deal is reached soon so we can all get back to work. Until then — over and out. #wgastrong.”
Saturday Night Live will be ‘airing repeats’ until further notice. (Pete Davidson can be seen here handing out Pizza to striking writers.)
All the late-night talk shows. Jimmy Kimmel Live!, Late Show With Stephen Colbert, Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Late Night With Seth Meyers, The Daily Show, Real Time With Bill Maher and Last Week Tonight With John Oliver are going dark as well.
“Without [our writers] this show would be called The Late Show With a Guy Rambling About Lord of the Rings and Boats for an Hour,” Colbert joked. “This negotiation affects our whole staff, who work so hard to bring you this show every night, which is why everybody, including myself, hopes both sides reach a deal. I support collective bargaining. This nation owes so much to unions. They’re the reason we have weekends, and by extension, why we have TGI Fridays. So the next time you enjoy a whiskey-glazed blaze burger, you thank a union.” - Stephen Colbert
“Strong writing is essential to this show — it’s essential to any show where the host, like myself, is at best a C+ performer. I really gotta have the jokes. I love writing, I love writing for TV and for this show. No one is entitled to a job in show business, but for those who have a job in show business, they are entitled to fair compensation. They’re entitled to make a living — I think it’s a very reasonable demand that’s being put out by the guild, and I support those demands.” -Seth Meyers
And as the strike continues, obviously, I’ll keep you in the loop, but I’ll leave you with this clip of Amanda Seyfried being asked about it at the Met Gala:
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“Everything changed with streaming, and everyone should be compensated for their work. It’s f-cking easy.”
And before I go… we need your breakup stories AGAIN
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Make them as detailed as poss and leave em on the form below - love you!!!
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I really appreciate the way you've covered the strike, by focusing on what the writers are asking for and why and then mentioning shows that might be affected. I'm already tired of seeing headlines about shows that will be delayed, basically making it the fault of the writers who are just asking for fair and livable compensation for their work and protections from AI use. Am I excited to see Stranger Things wrap up? 100% But I care more about the people who are the backbone of the incredible media we get to see a hell of a lot more. Let's hope the studios give them what they deserve!
Hey Luce and Bel!
I may be able to help with the Portugal thing (I hope so at least ah!) Have popped you an email!
Also regarding the strike - I think this is really for the best - People complain all the time of the quality of tv declining but with writers getting so much less than what they deserve - how could it not? Like most strikes I am an avid supporter of fighting for what is deserved (and we have been seeing it a lot in the uk atm) The cory-bobs only made social issues shine brighter with the insane amount of inequality. I hope they come out victorious in their fight for better pay!