Hollywood strike
Screenwriters want to go back to the negotiating table
US screenwriters have been on strike since May 2, 2023
© imago/Levine-Roberts
Negotiations are now set to begin again in the screenwriters’ strike in Hollywood, which has been going on for more than four months.
As of May 2, 2023, there are more than 11,000 US screenwriters in the Strike, in mid-July around 16,000 actors from the acting union SAG-AFTRA joined them. After initial negotiations between the strikers and the major studios and streaming providers at the end of August were unsuccessful, a breakthrough is now to be achieved in renewed talks. The Writers Guild of America has suggested a meeting for next week, the umbrella organization of film and television producers AMPTP said on Thursday.
Film studios appear ready to negotiate
How The Hollywood Reporter magazine reports, the negotiators from the film studios appeared ready to break the negotiation deadlock that had existed for weeks. A statement from the AMPTP on Thursday said: “On Wednesday, September 13, the WGA reached out to the AMPTP and requested a meeting to advance negotiations. We have reached an agreement and are working to schedule it for next week “Every member company of the AMPTP is committed and committed to reaching a fair deal and working with the WGA to end the strike.”
The writers’ union confirmed this in its own brief statement: “The WGA and AMPTP are in the process of agreeing on a time to come back into the room.”
“This was not a meeting to negotiate a deal”
After negotiations were broken off at the end of August, the union expressed disappointment and anger. “This was not a meeting to negotiate a deal,” it said at the time According to CNN in an official statement. “This was a meeting to get us to give in.”
Strikebreakers Drew Barrymore and Bill Maher
It remains to be seen whether the renewed negotiations will achieve the hoped-for breakthrough. Several cases are currently making headlines in which US artists are turning away from the ongoing strike. Actress Drew Barrymore (48) announced that she would resume production of her talk format “Drew Barrymore Show”.
Her colleague Bill Maher (67) also wants to start his “Real Time” show again. In an Instagram post on Thursday, the comedian and presenter explained his controversial decision as follows: “‘Real Time’ is returning, unfortunately without a writer and without anything written. It’s been five months and it’s time to get people back to work. The authors have important concerns that I understand and hope will be resolved to their satisfaction, but they are not the only ones with questions, problems and concerns. Despite my support, much of the staff is experiencing great difficulty.”