After more than four-and-a-half months, Hollywood writers have finally reached a tentative deal with studios on a new labor contract. The agreement between the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) was announced on Sunday following intense bargaining sessions in Los Angeles.
The terms of the deal have not been disclosed to the public and will still need to be ratified by the WGA’s approximately 11,000 members.
The WGA negotiating committee expressed its pride in the agreement, stating in an email to members, “This deal is exceptional, with meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership. We are eager to share the details, but we must wait until everything is finalized.”
During the negotiations, prominent studio executives, including Disney CEO Bob Iger and Netflix CEO Ted Sarandos, participated in the discussions. The AMPTP presented its newest proposal to the WGA on Saturday after several meetings that took place throughout the week. Further discussions were held on Sunday before the agreement was ultimately reached.
Leadership votes on the agreement are scheduled for Tuesday, after which the details will be shared with members and a full vote will be conducted. The strike will only officially end once the leadership votes to do so, and members are not to return to work until authorized by the Guild. However, WGA picketing has been suspended.
Following the resolution of the writers’ strike, the AMPTP will likely resume talks with the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA). The participation of SAG-AFTRA’s 65,000 actors in the picketing efforts has severely impacted the industry and California’s economy, as film and television production provides a significant number of jobs and wages in the state.
The writers’ strike, which started on May 2, 2023, was the first for the WGA since 2007. Lasting 146 days, it is the second-longest strike in WGA history, behind the 1988 strike of 154 days. The WGA has argued that the streaming model has made it difficult for middle-class writers to sustain a living due to inconsistent work and shorter seasons.
In their demands for higher residual payments, the WGA has also requested more transparency in streaming viewership data. The AMPTP countered by stating that television writers receive many benefits and guaranteed weeks or episodes when hired.
Please note that Paramount Pictures and CBS News are part of Paramount Global. Some CBS News staff are members of SAG-AFTRA or the Writers Guild, but their contracts are unaffected by the strikes.
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