2023 Writers’ and SAG Strike Explained

The Hollywood writers’ strike is still underway, and actors have officially joined the fight to protect the future of TV, movies, and creators. The actors part of the Screen Actors Guild — American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) have, like the writers, been seeking better pay and residuals for their contract. After negotiations failed with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), per Deadline, the union officially went on strike on July 14.

“We are the victims here,” SAG-AFTRA Union President Fran Drescher said during a news conference Thursday, per CNBC. “We are being victimized by a very greedy entity. I am shocked by the way the people that we have been in business with are treating us.”

Earlier this year, negotiations between the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the AMPTP led the WGA to vote yes to authorize a strike on May 1 (by a historic margin of 97.85 percent), which immediately went into effect the following day as an agreement was not reached on their next three-year contract.

According to Variety, the call for a strike is the result of the WGA seeking changes to writer compensation and working conditions in Hollywood — including a “sizable increase in minimums, better formula for residuals on streaming platforms, and a minimum staffing requirement for all TV shows.”

The SAG-AFTRA strike, which bans actors from promoting projects in interviews or conventions in addition to stopping work on all current projects, has already had visible consequences. On July 13, per CNN, “Oppenheimer” actors exited the movie during its London premiere, and director Christopher Nolan told reporters that they were “off to write their picket signs.”

Previously, several writers told POPSUGAR that the “existential fight” of their Hollywood strike largely revolves around the lucrative streaming boom, which they have yet to reap the benefits of. “We’re on food stamps. We’re on unemployment, moving back in with our parents. Sh*t is not sweet right now,” said TV writer Kyra Jones, who has credits on Hulu’s “Woke” and ABC’s “Queens.” “[This field] is really, really unsustainable, and the tipping point of that is why we’re striking.”

On May 2, the Writers Guild of America West Twitter account announced that their strike commenced after six weeks of negotiating with Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, NBC Universal, Paramount+, and Sony under AMPTP’s umbrella. “Though our Negotiating Committee began this process intent on making a fair deal, the studios’ responses have been wholly insufficient given the existential crisis writers are facing,” the labor union wrote in another tweet.

What’s been happening during the writers’ strike, you may ask? Well, writers who are members of the WGA — including their agents or anyone acting on their behalf — are prohibited from writing, pitching, or negotiating for work amid the strike. The purpose, according to the labor union, is to ensure the best possible contract for writers going forward. Picketing writers have also been actively shutting down multimillion-dollar productions for several TV shows and movies.

Compared to previous strikes, the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strikes are largely fueled by the entertainment industry’s major shift to streaming content. While TV shows and movies have adjusted to the ever-growing tech era, one thing that hasn’t evolved is how studios pay creators. “The companies have used the transition to streaming to cut writer pay and separate writing from production, worsening working conditions for series writers at all levels,” the WGA shared in a March 14 bulletin. As a result, TV writer Danny Tolli told The New York Times, “Writers at every level and in every genre, whether it’s features or TV, we’re all being devalued and financially taken advantage of by the studios.” With their strike, actors are also asking for better pay that compensates for the industry’s shift to streaming. “We’re not going to keep doing incremental changes on a contract that no longer honors what is happening right now with this business model that was foisted upon us,” Drescher added, per CNN.

So what does all this mean for the future of entertainment? Ahead, find a guide to the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strikes, with all your biggest questions answered.

What Is a Writers’ Strike?

According to Vox, a writers’ strike occurs when members of the WGA, the labor union that most employed writers in Hollywood belong to, stop working until the organization reaches an agreement with the AMPTP, which negotiates on behalf of all major studios and hundreds of production companies. Meaning, no members are allowed to write or sell new scripts for TV shows or movies until the WGA votes to end the strike. And in most cases, this also means writers go without pay for the duration of the strike.

A writers’ strike doesn’t just affect those who creatively contribute to TV shows or films, it also touches those who work in other sectors of the entertainment industry when production halts — including caterers, set dressers, directors, and background actors, who then have to find other work in the interim. And it also hits those at home, as TV shows are delayed or get shortened seasons abruptly.

When Was the Last Writers’ Strike?

The last time a writers’ strike of this magnitude happened was in late 2007 — which resulted in many scripted shows having their seasons shortened, some late-night programs being forced off the air, and a few reality shows getting longer or new seasons, per Vox. According to The Hollywood Reporter, that strike lasted 100 days, concluding on Feb. 12, 2008, and took a $2.1 billion toll on the Los Angeles economy. A new three-year contract was eventually approved by the WGA at the time, but streaming wasn’t a big part of that conversation. Today, Hollywood studios still haven’t figured out (and allegedly haven’t been willing to figure out) how to factor those residuals into what writers earn today.

Why Is a Writers’ Strike Happening in 2023?

This year’s writers’ strike was up in the air for months, with the Los Angeles Times reporting on its potential to happen back in February. According to The New York Times, writers are fighting for raises, while studios argue that a new compensation structure ignores economic realities. At this point, writers and Hollywood companies haven’t been able to settle their differences, which is why the industry is experiencing its first writers’ strike in 15 years. It’s also why the strike is now in its third month, with Deadline reporting, per one studio executive, that it’s expected to last until October as studios attempt to “break the WGA.”

“The endgame is to allow things to drag on until union members start losing their apartments and losing their houses,” one studio exec told the publication. Another insider called it “a cruel but necessary evil.” “Nobody wanted a strike, but everybody knew this was make or break,” another executive added.

What Is the Writers Guild of America Demanding?

The main issue that writers are striking over is compensation, which, according to the WGA, has been negatively impacted by the recent streaming takeover. Writers’ demands also revolve around pay equity, residuals for theatrical and streaming features, better preproduction writers’ rooms, increased contributions to the WGA’s pension plan and health fund, and more measures to combat discrimination and harassment. For the full list of demands, visit the WGA’s 2023 contract website.

Which TV Shows Have Been Affected by the 2023 Writers’ Strike?

After the strike went into effect, all shows that produce immediate work were halted. That means late-night talk shows like “Jimmy Kimmel Live!,” “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” “The Late Show With Stephen Colbert,” “Late Night With Seth Meyers,” and “The Daily Show” shut down filming new episodes on May 2, according to Deadline. All except “The Daily Show” are airing reruns until further notice.

“Saturday Night Live” was similarly affected as well, as NBC issued an official statement on May 2 that reads, “The previously announced ‘Saturday Night Live’ hosted by Pete Davidson and musical guest Lil Uzi Vert is cancelled due to the writers’ strike. ‘SNL’ will air repeats until further notice starting Saturday, May 6.”

Next up, broadcast TV shows scheduled to return in the fall are delayed until the strike ends as they typically start writing in the summer. So that means network darlings like “Abbott Elementary” are, unfortunately, likely to have their upcoming seasons pushed back. Sitcom creator Quinta Brunson reacted to the strike at the 2023 Met Gala just hours before it went into effect, telling AP News, “I’m a member of WGA and support WGA, and them getting — we, us — getting what we need.”

Unscripted programming like reality shows, game shows, news, and sports will be largely unaffected for now, with reality television having significantly increased on fall primetime TV lineups for networks like ABC. Some streaming content also seems to be safe for now as its production model runs longer. Meaning, most of those projects are produced far before they’re distributed on platforms. Streamers also have huge libraries of content at their disposal, so viewers still have other means of entertainment amid the strike.

Movie projects will likely avoid any major effects from the strike until next year, but some that are currently in the pipeline may be delayed or unable to start filming since WGA intends to not have their picket lines crossed. But the longer the strike lasts, the more severe issues will arise.

Is a Hollywood Actors’ Strike Happening?

SAG-AFTRA commenced their strike at midnight on July 14. Around a month prior, the union announced that its members had voted 97.91 percent in favor of a strike authorization ahead of its contract negotiations with the AMPTP, which were originally set to expire at midnight on June 30 before the two organizations agreed to extend until July 12. Now that the strike has begun, the actors will, in short, cease to work on or promote any productions they’re a part of.

In a June statement sent to Deadline, SAG-AFTRA explained, “There’s no promotion of struck work during a strike. Promotional activities in relation to a signatory production is covered work under the Basic Agreement, and thus, is struck work during a strike.”

On June 24, Drescher shared an update on the union’s negotiations with the AMPTP, saying in a video, “I want to assure you, we are having an extremely productive negotiations that are laser-focused on all of the crucial issues you told us are most important to you. And we’re standing strong and we’re going to achieve a seminal deal.” But in a letter obtained by Deadline and addressed to the SAG-AFTRA leadership and negotiating committee, more than 300 actors — including Meryl Streep, Jennifer Lawrence, Quinta Brunson, Rami Malek, Amy Schumer, and Ben Stiller — signed a statement that expressed concerns over the type of deal that may be reached with studios.

“We are concerned by the idea that SAG-AFTRA members may be ready to make sacrifices that leadership is not,” the letter states. “We hope you’ve heard the message from us. This is an unprecedented inflection point in our industry, and what might be considered a good deal in any other years is simply not enough. We feel that our wages, our craft, our creative freedom, and the power of our union have all been undermined in the last decade. We need to reverse those trajectories.”

What Is SAG-AFTRA Demanding?

Like the WGA, SAG-AFTRA is demanding better protections from AI in their contracts, as well as more lucrative residual payments from streaming services.

When Was the Last Actors’ Strike?

The last time Hollywood both the writers’ and actors’ unions went on strike was in 1960, per Forbes, when Ronald Reagan led SAG. The strike concerned residual payments for film rights being shown on TV, and it lasted around one month.

How Will the Actors’ Strike Affect the Entertainment Industry?

Production and promotion for most new projects involving SAG-AFTRA members will be halted. According to Deadline, upcoming movies releasing in July won’t be hugely affected by the strike because millions have already been spent on long-lead marketing campaigns for highly anticipated titles like Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling’s “Barbie,” Nolan’s “Oppenheimer,” and Tom Cruise’s “Mission: Impossible — Dead Reckoning Part 1.” Deadline also reported, per conversations with studio executives, that Hollywood studios will likely be forced to rely on trailers and TV spots for promo versus talent, given the strike.

Upcoming conventions like San Diego Comic-Con, fall film festivals, award shows, and Christmas releases will also take a hit. On July 11, Variety reported that the Television Academy and Fox are debating whether the 2023 Emmy Awards will be delayed until November or possibly January of next year. Only time will tell what happens next.

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