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The nearly five-months-long Hollywood writer’s strike was declared over on Tuesday after board members from the Writers Guild of America (WGA) approved a new contract with studios.
The deal came after union bosses said earlier this week that their roughly 11,500 writers had reached a tentative agreement with the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers (AMPTP) following months of back-and-forth negotiations over improved salary, residuals for streaming programs, and protections against the threat of artificial intelligence (AI) in the film industry.
“Eligible voters will be able to vote from October 2nd through October 9th, and will receive ballot and ratification materials when the vote opens,” union leaders said.
Union leaders also unanimously voted to authorize its members to return to work, according to the statement.
Movie Productions Halted
Tuesday’s announcement will no doubt bring welcome relief to industry leaders following a 148-day-long work stoppage that has effectively paralyzed productions across the industry, impacting everything from streaming services to movie production.
WGAW has been on strike since May 2 while another union, the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), which represents more than 160,000 actors, began striking on July 14.
As for residuals, union members will receive a “bonus equal to 50 percent of the fixed domestic and foreign residual” if the show or film is “viewed by 20 percent or more of the service’s domestic subscribers in the first 90 days of release or the first 90 days of any subsequent exhibition year.”
That bonus structure takes effect for projects released on or after Jan. 1, 2024.
‘Exceptional’ Deal
Elsewhere, the deal establishes regulations for the use of AI, including banning the technology from being used to write or rewrite literary material and prohibiting studios from requiring writers to use it. Union members can, however, choose to use AI when performing writing services if the company consents.
The new contract, which also includes numerous other benefits and employment protections, is set to expire in May 2026 and is valued at around $233 million according to the WGA, far more than the $86 million the AMPTP had offered.
Earlier on Sunday, WGA announced they had reached a tentative minimum basic agreement with the AMPTP, calling the deal “exceptional” with “meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership.”
“It is the leverage generated by your strike, in concert with the extraordinary support of our union siblings, that finally brought the companies back to the table to make a deal,” WGA added.
So far, AMPTP has yet to publish a detailed statement regarding the new agreement but acknowledged this week that a deal had been reached.
