When Hollywood writers last went on strike in 2007, the Los Angeles entertainment industry suffered $2 billion in losses.
Thousands of US television and film writers will go on strike today, Tuesday, according to the trade union. The scope of the strike includes, for example, employees of Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery and Netflix.
Writers are demanding pay raises and a bigger share of the big profits streaming has brought to the industry. The employer side, i.e. the film studios, cite financial pressures, because of which the writers’ demands cannot be agreed to, reports news agency AFP.
According to AFP, the Writers Guild of America (WGA), which represents trade unions for television and film writers, says the industry is dominated by a gig economy that effectively drives writers to work as freelancers. In addition, the authors say that the trend of shorter production seasons has affected the income level, says (you switch to another service) The Guardian.
A big stone in the shoes of screenwriters is the change brought by streaming services to the industry. According to them, the salary payment model has not been updated with the change.
In the past, the screenwriter received payment for each time the material was used again – for example, whenever a television series is shown as a remake or when a DVD copy of the film is sold.
On the other hand, a total fee is paid for writing movies and series that end up on streaming services, even if it is a huge international hit like Stranger Things or Bridgerton.
The WGA is calculated (you switch to another service), that in recent years fairy-tale profits have been forged in the entertainment industry. In 2000, the industry’s profits hovered around five billion dollars, by 2021 they had swelled to 28 billion. At the beginning of the millennium, the profits of Disney, Fox, Paramount, NBC, Universal and Time Warner had been combined. Today, Netflix is involved in the commotion, which accounts for a huge share of the entire industry’s revenues.
Late night programs for a break
The effects of the writers’ strike, which starts on Tuesday, will be felt quickly in the software. For example, daily late-night talk shows such as The Tonight Show With Jimmy Fallon and Last Week Tonight With John Oliver may immediately go on hiatus, as their topical comedy is created by a group of writers.
In addition, the release of series and films planned for release at the end of the year may be delayed. According to the Guardian, the fall program season is often scripted in May-June. The channels are predicted to fill program slots with reality series, news programs and reruns.
When Hollywood screenwriters last went on strike in 2007, a hundred-day stoppage cost the Los Angeles entertainment industry about two billion dollars, according to AFP.