Good pictures
Talks between the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and Hollywood studios continued into Friday night, with questions swirling around the city as to whether an agreement had been reached or if talks had broken down again.
There’s no word yet on a potential deal, but people with knowledge of what’s going on in the chamber say there’s momentum on both sides to find a resolution to end the 144-day writers’ strike. Friday’s talks reportedly began around 11 a.m. PT.
Several sources have been confirmed Variety At press time, WGA and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) negotiating team members were still negotiating at the table in Sherman Oaks, having now spent three days in the room with four top entertainment CEOs: Disney’s Bob Iger, Warner Bros. Discovery’s David Zaslau, NBC Universal’s Donna Langley and Netflix Ted Sarandos.
The four CEOs in the room were on the call at some point on Friday with some of their colleagues at other companies.
The WGA has been on strike since May 2. Actors Union SAG-AFTRA joined the Writers Guild in a walkout on July 14 after SAG-AFTRA was unable to reach a new contract with the studios.
Key points preventing the WGA and AMPTP from signing a renewed contract include disagreements over AI in the creative process, mini writers’ rooms and streaming residuals.
The WGA and AMPTP resumed negotiations on September 20 for the first time in nearly a month. On Thursday evening, multiple sources said the studio had some last-minute issues regarding what to consider as new points brought to the table by the WGA. The talks continued till 7:30pm and were scheduled to resume on Friday morning.
