Late last week, the WGA walked away from strike negotiations with Hollywood TV and film producers after the WGA noted what they felt was a lack of serious effort to reach a resolution.
In addition to the financial considerations previously made public, it appears writers and producers are still far apart on several other “below the surface” issues. This includes the WGA wanting control over reality-programming scriptwriters, which would prevent networks from turning to “unscripted” reality shows in future strikes, in order to fill programming schedules. The also asked for the same sort of control over animated programming. This could prove a tough hurdle for both sides, as the WGA has clear interest in gaining control over these types of programming, while producers seem unlikely to make such concessions as it would make any future strikes much tougher on the industry.
With these issues and more creating ripples between the two sides, it’s not likely that writers and producers will be exchanging diamond rings and walking down the “new labor agreement” aisle any time soon. Get ready for a longer, dragged out conflict before both sides work this one, folks; and get ready for tons of reality programming, game shows and, yes, reruns.
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