Writers’ strike in Hollywood, a disaster scenario

Hollywood is scared. In agent offices, on film sets, in the cafes where everyone who works at the heart of the global film and entertainment industry gathers, the question is on everyone’s lips: what if, the 1er May, everything stopped? What if, all of a sudden, the entire sector found itself on technical unemployment? The community is following with anguish the latest news from the Writers Guild of America (WGA), the very powerful single union that defends some 11,000 screenwriters in the country. At stake are negotiations for a new three-year deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which represents around 300 producers and major studios (Paramount, Sony, Disney, Warner, as well as Amazon, Netflix and Apple).

The previous deal between the two parties, signed in 2020, expires on 1er may. The authors of scripts for films and series, but also sketches of late shows, these ultra-popular television shows, threaten to put down the pen if their demands are not heard. On April 17, 98% of its members voted in favor of a strike, in the increasingly likely case of a breakdown in negotiations. Their grievances? An increase in the minimum wage, stricter regulations concerning rewrites and corrections, often done free of charge, and a better redistribution of the rights that derive from their work.

On this specific point, the system has been the same for more than half a century. In addition to the screenwriters’ salaries, there are royalties for each televised rebroadcast. But Hollywood has changed. The last few years have seen streaming platforms (Amazon, Netflix, Disney+, Hulu) become giants. However, these do not communicate about their audiences, and the current agreements provide for very low copyrights. In February, the magazine variety took the case of Timothy Dowling as an example. Romantic Comedy Co-Writer The myth, with Adam Sandler (2011), he had the good surprise, in January 2022, to see the film climb to second place among the most watched content on Netflix. A success that he does not see when he receives his royalties check a few weeks later. ” Netflix clearly paid to acquire the film, but this money does not reach the screenwriter”, he wondered then.

Union minimum

For years, these copyrights (called residuals and established in 1953 during an agreement between the WGA and the studios concerning the rebroadcasting of episodes of the series) were the financial cushion that allowed screenwriters to manage the precariousness inherent in the profession, to go through periods without work. This windfall now belongs to the past. “Producers have used the emergence of streaming to reduce the remuneration of series writers at all levels. Series budgets have exploded, but median writer salaries have plummeted,” said the WGA in a press release at the end of March.

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