There is hope Hollywood’s writers will soon be able to return to work after more than four months on strike, with the Writers Guild of America (WGA) reaching a tentative deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
In a statement to its members on Sunday, WGA said it had reached an “exceptional” agreement that contained “meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership”.
The organisation went on to note that details of the deal would be kept under wraps “until the last i is dotted”, before requesting patience “one last time” while the Memorandum of Agreement was completed.
As outlined by the guild, the negotiating committee will vote on whether to recommend the finished document and send it on to the WGAW Board and WGAE Council for approval. The board and council will then vote on whether to authorise a contract ratification vote by the membership.
It’s the first sign of a light at the end of the tunnel for the dispute, which began at the start of May.
The two sides have since remained at loggerheads over key proposals such as staffing requirements for writers’ rooms and duration of employment per season.
The Australian Writers Guild has stood in solidarity with its US counterpart, advising its members not to work on active projects within the jurisdiction of the WGA throughout the duration of the strike, while also taking part in an international call to action event held in June.
In welcoming the latest development, president Shane Brennan said local writers joined with film and television industry workers everywhere in “applauding both the WGA and the AMPTP in hammering out an agreement to get people back to work.”
“Our membership has stood shoulder to shoulder with our WGA colleagues from the early days of the strike, supporting them in their determination to negotiate a fairer deal for writers,” he said.
“An end to the strike will mean some projects, which were put on hold in Australia when the strike began, may well be able to gear back up.”
The writers’ strike was one of the contributing factors in the cancellation of AppleTV+’s Metropolis, which was due to film in Victoria. Other projects, such as the second season of Binge dramedy Colin From Accounts, were put on hold while the action was ongoing.
Attention is now expected to turn to SAG-AFTRA strike, which has been running concurrently with the WGA industrial action since July.