The Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) have announced that they are resuming negotiations on a new contract, potentially bringing an end to the three-month-long writers’ strike in Hollywood. This development comes after a second meeting between the two parties, where they discussed a potential negotiation protocol and the issues they intend to bring to the table.
The WGA has emphasized the need for the AMPTP to respond to all of its key concerns in order for talks to continue. They have also highlighted the importance of negotiating strike-related issues, including protections for writers who do not wish to return to work until a deal with SAG-AFTRA, another entertainment industry union, is reached.
One of the main demands from the WGA is to establish rules that would codify the writers room and address the trend of less experienced writers being hired for short periods of time before a show’s production begins. The WGA argues that this prevents these writers from gaining valuable experience and advancing in their careers.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is another crucial issue for writers. The WGA wants to introduce additional regulations, such as banning the use of AI-generated writing as credited source material for adaptations. However, during previous talks, the AMPTP only offered an annual meeting to discuss AI developments instead of concrete regulations.
While details of the latest AMPTP offer were not disclosed, the guild points out that the AMPTP has provided more detailed regulations on consent, compensation, and AI use in its contracts with the Directors Guild of America and its latest offer to SAG-AFTRA.
Meanwhile, WGA members will continue their strike activities while negotiations take place. This strike is set to surpass the 100-day mark, making it longer than the previous WGA strike that occurred in 2007-2008.
In regards to SAG-AFTRA, the actors guild stated that it has not heard from the AMPTP since their strike began and that they are ready to return to the negotiating table at any time.
As negotiations with the WGA resume, it is unlikely that talks with SAG-AFTRA will restart concurrently, as the AMPTP typically negotiates with one entertainment industry union at a time.
