After three months, Writers Guild and studios agree to talk
Writer and actor Cheech Manohar, second from right, pickets with other members of the Writers Guild of America outside Universal Studios in Universal City.
Representatives of the Writers Guild of America and the major studios have agreed to meet for the first time since the Hollywood writers’ strike began three months ago.
In a statement sent to its members Tuesday night, the Writers Guild’s negotiating committee said that the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which bargains on behalf of Walt Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, Netflix and other streaming services and studios, reached out to request a meeting on Friday to discuss negotiations.
Company Town What to know about the SAG-AFTRA actors’ strike Learn which jobs are impacted by the SAG-AFTRA strike, which movies and TV shows have shut down and where actors can get help.
Advertisement
It is unclear whether the meeting will result in any breakthrough to resolve the months-long conflict, but it is a sign of a possible thaw in the tense standoff over streaming pay and other issues.
“We’ll be back in communication with you sometime after the meeting with further information,” the Writers Guild’s negotiating committee wrote.
The meeting comes at a time when studios face mounting pressure to resolve a widening labor dispute that has roiled Hollywood.
Nearly three weeks ago, members of SAG-AFTRA joined writers on picket lines, halting film and TV productions nationwide.
Planned movie shoots have been scrapped. And the upcoming fall TV season is in jeopardy, without new scripted episodes of “Abbott Elementary,” “Law & Order: SVU” and “NCIS.”
Top studio executives discussed a strategy for resolving the conflict at a meeting Friday.
“We remain committed to finding a path to mutually beneficial deals with both unions,” the AMPTP said in a statement on Tuesday.
Advertisement
The union sought to downplay expectations of an imminent resolution.
“As we’ve said before, be wary of rumors,” the Writers Guild’s negotiating committee said. “Whenever there is important news to share, you will hear it directly from us.”
The union said it had no further comment.
The sides remain far apart on a number major issues, including demands by writers to secure a larger share of streaming revenue, greater protections against the use of artificial intelligence and increases in minimum pay rates to offset inflation and the shift toward shorter TV seasons.
Source: Los Angeles Times
