This is like asking someone if they're bluffing. "Of course I'm not bluffing", he bluffs.<p>Hollywood execs would claim they'll hold out <i>indefinitely</i>, if they thought anyone would remotely believe their claim.
It’s a total mystery whether, or how quickly, customers will cancel streaming services if there’s no new scripted content.<p>It’s possible they won’t for a long time. In that case, studios would keep a steady stream of income despite no new shows. That would greatly reduce the leverage that writers have. That’s the background to these studio comments.<p>Typically there has been a tight connection between new content and steady revenue. Studios needed new movies every month to generate income. Networks needed new episodes every week to keep audience up and advertisers spending. But streaming services auto-charge every month or year unless the consumer makes an effort to stop it.<p>It’s an opt-out revenue model instead of opt-in.
In previous strikes, writers have taken on other gigs to make ends meet.<p>It is a historically tight labor market. I wonder if studios are worried about that.<p>This whole thing could just make Lyft and DoorDash in LA slightly cheaper rather than seriously hurt (already underpaid, if the guild is to be believed) writers.
It's cold but... what strike doesn't work this way? This is the definition of a strike - you are holding out until the other party is suffering more losses than they can reasonably sustain compared to the costs of giving in; in order to obtain a favorable deal.<p>On that note... I'm not actually convinced "new content" is all that necessary, even though that is an intuitive assumption on my part.
The studios will bleed money from yearly superhero movie sales and WGA will starve because they long forgot how to write anything unique. Meanwhile talk show hosts will blabber and laugh at their own jokes to fill in the time just like they did during the 2008 strike.<p>General public once again will realize just how unimaginative and unfunny political commentators actually are without scripts and how much of the insight is actually meticulously crafted.<p>Its 2008 all over again, and its a good thing.
Not directly about the WGA strike, but it's interesting seeing the reactions here vs if this had been said by say, a tech exec about software engineers.
Maybe they will use ChatGPT or Claude to write the scripts ruing the strike. The context is starting to get long enough to maybe do an actual script.<p>Perhaps as a bonus, we can get an uncensored version of ChatGPT/Claude. I suppose getting the following response too many times will be frustrating:<p>“I am an ethical AI. The actions you are trying to portray of Prince Aemond Targaryen do not meet the standards of ethical, non-harmful conduct. Would you like me to rewrite the script in a more ethical manner, respecting human rights?”
Flush with global money the studios and their mouthpieces hot shotted the industry to take advantage of streaming mania.
During covid with even more stupid money flowing in they burned through all the “content” for no reason.<p>When someone like Zaslav ignored the Yentaverse completely and adjusted the streaming approach to another bucket instead of a loss leader, they have positioned their companies for future revenue and success.<p>I was in a union for a long time so it’s not surprising the language or action companies use.
At this point, I would not be shocked if Hollywood studios try to hire writers in Canada and other english speaking countries that are clearly not going to be participating in these strikes, to get some new content moving.<p>Given time horizons, seems like one of the inevitable long term options for them, is diversify writer rooms across countries with similar cultures to intended audiences
The Realpolitik of strikes is "which side needs the other more." In particular in the US, the post-war labor regulations make it harder than in some other countries for the unions.
“The endgame is to allow things to drag on until union members start losing their apartments and losing their houses,” a studio executive told Deadline. Acknowledging the cold-as-ice approach, several other sources reiterated the statement. One insider called it “a cruel but necessary evil.”
I predict writers are going to lose. The last strike gave a big boost to realty TV and other craptacular media; a lot of consumers <i>do not care</i> about art or creativity and will cheerfully watch entertaining drivel. And the bar is already low; much of American media is incredibly boring, though honorable exceptions exist.
This is pure speculation, but I imagine there are plenty of people that could write a passable show, and would even do it for free if given the opportunity. Same with other art. What leverage do these writers actually have?
Oh, no. Those late night comedians might actually have to <i>think up</i> their clever monologs! Like they did when they were struggling stand-up comedians. They might have to interview their guests as if they actually knew anything about them.<p>Bad idea. Just shut down.<p><a href="https://decider.com/2023/05/02/late-night-television-shut-down-wga-strike-tonight-show-jimmy-kimmel-live-the-late-show/" rel="nofollow noreferrer">https://decider.com/2023/05/02/late-night-television-shut-do...</a>