Hollywood writers set to strike again for a second day
Hollywood writers enter day two of a strike, with Writer's Guild of America union members set to begin picketing around 9 a.m. Wednesday outside major Los Angeles studios.
Following Monday night's announcement by the WGA's West Coast and East Coast branches that contract talks with the studios had broken down, the union walked off the job when its contract expired at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday, the union's first strike in 15 years.
Pickets went up beginning Tuesday afternoon, but Wednesday, the strikers have an earlier call time of 9 a.m. They are expected to be out in force again on Wednesday morning at Amazon's Studio in Culver City, CBS' Studio City lot, Television City, The Walt Disney Co.'s corporate headquarters in Burbank, the Fox Studio Lot, Netflix's Hollywood headquarters, Paramount Studios in Hollywood, Sony Studios in Culver City, Universal Studios and Warner Bros. in Burbank.
The union had been negotiating with Discovery-Warner, NBC Universal, Paramount, Sony, Netflix, Amazon, Apple and Disney, all represented under the umbrella of the AMPTP.
In a statement released on Monday night, the AMPTP said they presented a "comprehensive package proposal to the Guilld last night which included generous increases in compensation for writers as well as improvements in streaming residuals." WGA responded that this offer was insufficient.
The WGA is pushing for an increase in pay and residuals, especially relating to streaming productions, they are also fighting for staffing levels in writing rooms and the use of artificial intelligence.
The strike disrupts work on hundreds of movies, scripted television series, late-night talk shows and streaming productions. The late-night talk shows will feel the most immediate impact, with shows such as "Jimmy Kimmel Live," which is shot in Hollywood, expected to go dark, along with programs including "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert," "Late Night with Seth Meyers" and "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon." NBC's "Saturday Night Live" also quickly fell victim to the strike, canceling this week's planned live episode hosted by Pete Davidson.
The walkout will also have a wide-ranging economic ripple effect on thousands of crew members and behind-the-scenes workers such as hair-and-makeup artists, transportation employees and food servers -- as well as impact businesses near studios such as restaurants that typically serve workers who, for the foreseeable future, will not be reporting to work.
Governor Gavin Newsom said his office has not been involved in the labor talks but will get involved if asked to do so.
"We're very concerned about what's going on, because both sides are dug in, and the stakes are high," Newsom said. "I've got to say, I'm sensitive to the concerns of the writers, very, in terms of what streaming's doing, what the next conversation, AI (artificial intelligence), is doing in this space. This is a very real and existential moment."
