Another Hollywood writers’ strike is going ahead. Here’s what you need to know
Hollywood’s writers are going out on strike for the first time in more than 15 years.
The Writers Guild of America announced on Monday night that its 11,500 members will stop working on Tuesday afternoon, after negotiations between the union and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), a group representing most major studios and streaming services, broke down.
The WGA’s board of directors “voted unanimously to call a strike, effective 12:01 AM, Tuesday, May 2”, the WGA West tweeted on Monday night.
This decision could have a huge impact on the television and possibly films you will be able to watch in the future. Here’s what you need to know.
<p lang=«en» dir=«ltr» xml:lang=«en»>Though our Negotiating Committee began this process intent on making a fair deal, the studios’ responses have been wholly insufficient given the existential crisis writers are facing.Residuals are like royalty payments for screenwriters; they earn these from both regular broadcasts and streaming, but they currently earn a lot more from the former – which, as streaming continues to proliferate and dominate, is causing a lot of disquiet in the industry.
It is complicated, but essentially if an episode of a TV show is broadcast on both regular TV and a streaming service, most companies pay less in residuals for the latter. Writers for streamed shows are paid a set amount of money regardless of whether the show is a hit. But broadcast television uses a “reward-for-success” model that means if a show is a hit, writers can earn more in residuals.
The WGA has argued that because success is not factored into streaming residuals, seasoned writers are not being recognised with the wages they deserve and wages are stagnating.
At the same
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