The strike of Hollywood screenwriters, which is currently paralyzing the production of films and series in the United States, reached the symbolic threshold of 100 days on Wednesday, the feathers of the industry imputing this symbolic threshold “shameful” to the studios. After more than three months on strike, the gap between the powerful screenwriters’ guild (WGA) and the bosses of studios and streaming platforms still seems wide open. No agreement has been reached to better remunerate scriptwriters with profits from streaming, or to regulate the use of artificial intelligence in the industry.
Since the beginning of this social movement, the two parties have hardly spoken to each other. And in mid-July, the crisis worsened with the entry into strike of the actors, who carry similar demands. Almost completely at a standstill, Hollywood had not experienced such a double social movement since 1960.
“The refusal to seriously consider the reasonable proposals of the screenwriters has made the WGA strike last for 100 days and it is not over,” the WGA told AFP on Wednesday, denouncing this duration as a “shameful threshold” for studios. The studios “are fully responsible for shutting down the industry,” the union added in a statement, noting that meeting the strikers’ demands would cost “far less than the damage caused by their intransigence.”
The last writers’ strike in 2007-2008 lasted 100 days and cost the Californian economy $2.1 billion, according to an estimate by the Milken Institute. But this time, no way out is in sight. After three months of radio silence, screenwriters and studios resumed the dialogue on Friday, during a meeting which was to make it possible to consider a reopening of negotiations. But this meeting came to nothing.
A few hours before the meeting, the WGA doubted the good faith of the studios in a message addressed to its members. The employers reacted by denouncing an “unfortunate” rhetoric. “This strike has hurt thousands of people in this industry and we take it very seriously. Our only objective is to put people back to work”, assured the studios, grouped under the aegis of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
For Charlie Kesslering, present Wednesday on a picket in front of the offices of Netflix in Los Angeles, the struggle of the writers is an “existential fight” and “it will take much more than 100 days for the motivation to disappear”. “It’s about making sure that the careers we love so much remain careers and remain a viable way to earn a living,” added this screenwriter.
