A way out after five months of paralysis? Hollywood screenwriters announced Sunday that they had reached an agreement with the studios that would allow them to return to work after a long strike.
“We have reached an agreement in principle on a new (minimum basic agreement) 2023, that is, an agreement in principle on all points of the agreement, subject to the final wording of the contract,” says the letter from the Hollywood Writers Guild . (WGA) sent to its members.
“We can say, with great pride, that this agreement is exceptional, with important benefits and protections for screenwriters in all sectors of member activity,” the WGA said.
“We continue on strike”
The letter, which AFP was able to consult, does not give details of the agreement, but indicates that the details are being finalized and that the members will have the final say.
“To be clear, no one should return to work until the union expressly authorizes it. We remain on strike until then. But as of today we are suspending picketing. WGA strike,” the union added.
Thousands of film and television writers put down their pens in early May to demand better salaries, better rewards for creating hit shows and protection against artificial intelligence.
They have been protesting companies like Netflix and Disney for months and, along with actors striking in mid-July, have paralyzed the entertainment industry.
The actors’ strike will continue
Negotiations remained stalled for weeks until recently, with executives from Netflix, Disney, Universal and Warner Bros. Discovery personally participating in the talks in recent days.
Among their demands, the writers claim that their salaries have not kept up with inflation. They also want to be able to earn much more when one of their movies or series is a hit on a streaming platform, rather than receiving a lump sum payment, which is usually quite low regardless of the popularity of the show.
The two sectors also want safeguards against the use of artificial intelligence: actors fear that their image or voice will be cloned, while screenwriters fear that AI could be used for scripts and that they will be paid less, or that their scenarios will be use to train robots.
Negotiations continue
The WGA strike is much longer than the writers’ strike in 2007-2008, which lasted 100 days and cost the California economy $2.1 billion.
In early September, the Financial Times reported on a Milken Institute study that estimated the cost of the current Hollywood closure at $5 billion.
Even if the deal with the writers is closed, the actors’ strike will continue. Their union, SAG-AFTRA, the 160,000-member actors’ guild, has not spoken to employers since mid-July.
But the two unions share many similar demands, and the trade press believes that an agreement with the WGA could help pave the way for a resolution of the actors’ strike.
Source: BFM TV
