WGA writers are about to say “pencils up.” The Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) have reached a deal that will bring the 2023 writers strike to an end: After announcing on Sunday that an agreement had been reached, the WGA revealed on Tuesday that “our Negotiating Committee, WGAW Board, and WGAE Council all voted unanimously to recommend the agreement.” This officially brings the labor action to an end, as of 12:01 a.m. Wednesday.
The WGA and AMPTP came to an agreement on a three-year agreement, which still needs to be ratified by WGA members in order to take effect. In a statement, the WGA said, “We can say, with great pride, that this deal is exceptional — with meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership.”
As part of Tuesday’s announcement, the WGA released a summary of the new deal, which includes strong language about the potential use of AI, including news that “AI can’t write or rewrite literary material, and AI-generated material will not be considered source material under the MBA, meaning that AI-generated material can’t be used to undermine a writer’s credit or separated rights.” The WGA also successfully negotiated for the creation of a new success-based residual for streaming shows and movies, and the new deal adds minimize size requirements for writers rooms.
The WGA strike began on May 2nd, 2023, after the previous contract between writers and the studios elapsed. This immediately shut down late-night television production, even before the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA) joined the writers on the picket line in July. In subsequent months, production on projects across both film and television has been stalled, while the guilds wait for a fair deal from the studios.
Chief amongst the complaints raised by both writers and actors was the lack of residuals received for streaming content — in a pre-streaming world, residuals had been essential to making a sustainable living in Hollywood. In addition, both the WGA and SAG-AFTRA have expressed concerns over AI and its usage, which the AMPTP initially ignored.
While the WGA now has a contract with the AMPTP, SAG remains on strike, though it’s hard to embrace this as anything but a positive sign that Hot Strike Summer is almost over (especially since it’s not really summer anymore).
When both the WGA and SAG are back at work, expect a massive uptick in news on current and new projects, the return of Saturday Night Live (perhaps with Pete Davidson as host, to make up for the strike-canceled episode that never was), and the return of all your favorite actors to the red carpet, where a grateful press corps will eagerly await them.
Editor’s note, Sept. 26th: This article has been updated to include the news that the new agreement has been confirmed by WGA leadership, along with additional details about the deal.
