Daily Digest: Ouch. Productions Sunk 62.8% Last Week
➕ the current awkward state of affairs between studio execs and writers
Friday marks a month into the Writers Guild strike, so for the rest of this week we’ll be taking stock of the overall impact of the work stoppage. We’ve seen pickets galore — theme days, costumes, dogs, babies, babies holding picket signs, militant New Yorkers, agency-dispatched ice cream trucks — and efforts to pump the brakes on any active film and TV productions, getting Teamsters and IATSE crews to not cross picket lines.
So how impactful have the writers and their supporters been?
“In a normal week at this time of year, there would be dozens of scripted television projects in production,” said FilmLA spox Philip Sokoloski in a research note. “By contrast, we have just one (1) scripted TV series with a permit this week, and that is for parking near a stage or studio. Under the circumstances, the existence of this permit is not a reliable indicator that filming is taking place.”
The production count for feature film and TV projects for the week ended May 28 has sunk 62.8 percent to 128 in 2023, compared to 344 last year, including unscripted series and non-union indie films (which aren’t impacted by the strike), according to the nonprofit org, which serves as the film office for Los Angeles County.
“I’m crazy proud of how successful the guild has been in shutting down productions,” one showrunner texted me. “The faster the studios feel the financial pain of the strike, the faster we can get a fair deal and get back to work. I think I’m even more proud of and grateful for the union solidarity that allows for these shutdowns. I look forward to having their backs as well in the future. We’re all fighting the same fight, after all.”
Studio execs mutteringly acknowledged to The Hollywood Reporter that the shutdown tactics have been “effective.” But even as the writers make their point and we head for a “hot labor summer,” they are not taking lightly the economic impact of the strike, which is currently in Week Five.
“The point of any labor action is to do damage to the companies being struck against, so I’m very pleased that the Guild’s efforts have been met with success,” Arrowverse creator Marc Guggenheim tells me. “I’m also deeply appreciative of the Teamsters and IATSE who have made these shutdowns possible by honoring our picket lines. At the same time, however, no one feels good about impacting the jobs of of non-writers, which is why I hope a fair deal is reached quickly.”
Elsewhere on The Ankler…
You’re gonna want to read this one. Rank-and-file studio execs are in an awkward spot — they’re not the ones at the negotiating table, nor do most of them have David Zaslav’s ear. And any creative exec worth their salt has warm relationships with writers and showrunners across the industry. So what does the nearly month-long strike mean for those creative partnerships?
Nicole LaPorte and Peter Kiefer asked execs around town to find out:
“I joke around and say, ‘Let’s do a coffee truck or something,’ but I don’t. I honk when I drive by the gates. Like, ‘I hear you, guys!’ I honk because I am very sympathetic to labor. I totally understand. It puts us in a weird place because a lot of execs are politically liberal and we see hypocrisy, I guess, in some of what’s happening. For instance, the overpayment of people. That upsets me. When you see Ted Sarandos’ $50 million or whatever, to me, that’s gross. Even the Bela Bajaria salaries. Those are too high. They’re not justified in this world. So a lot of us are in a weird place.”
And now, the simple act of even driving into work can mean having to either uncomfortably avoid eye contact while pulling into the lot, or choosing to deliver a wave in support (but not too much support) to some you’ve known for years. And that’s just the start of the work day.
Still, at the same time, this exec says that the financial reality of streaming — and the absence of a secondary market and all of the billions in advertising dollars and windowing that used to go along with that — means that entertainment companies aren’t quite the money geysers they’re portrayed as on the picket signs. “I’m constantly being asked to cut my budget. We’re staring down the reality of like, if we don’t do X, Y and Z — how will this work? So while I’m very sympathetic (to writers) some of the stuff we do to keep costs down is what allows us to function.”
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Today’s Strike News
With the strike occurring at the peak of Emmy FYC season — and the WGA banning members from promoting their projects in that fashion — people have been left “looking over their shoulders to see what everyone else is doing,” says one awards campaigner. (Los Angeles Times)
As the Directors Guild sits in its final scheduled week of negotiations with the studios, the leaders of the WGA, SAG-AFTRA, IATSE and the Teamsters have released a “joint statement of solidarity,” saying they “stand alongside our sisters, brothers, and kin in the DGA in their pursuit of a fair contract.” (Deadline)
Producer Amy Pascal says development on a fourth Tom Holland and Zendaya Spider-Man film will continue when the strike culminates. (Variety)
They might be waiting much longer than tonight: the Jennifer Lopez wrestling drama Unstoppable has paused production due to picketing at its shooting location near USC. (Deadline)
Picket Sign of the Day
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Additional reporting by Matthew Frank