As the Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike enters its 71st day, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) has indicated that it has no intention of engaging in further negotiations with the guild for several more months.
According to a new report from Deadline, the studios are adopting a strategy to dig in and delay talks with the WGA until late October. This approach aims to wear down the writers financially and force them to seek a resolution on the studios’ terms. This all comes with a potential strike by SAG-AFTRA as the contract deadline nears its 11:59 PM expiration.
Deadline says that major studios, including Warner Bros. Discovery, Apple, Netflix, Amazon, Disney, and Paramount, are determined to “break the WGA.” The studios have devised a strategy to drag out the strike, anticipating that after five months on picket lines with no work, many writers will be financially strained. By allowing financial pressure to mount, the studios hope to prompt writers to demand a restart of negotiations, giving the studios greater leverage in dictating the terms of any potential deal.
The endgame is to allow things to drag on until union members start losing their apartments and losing their houses,” a studio executive told Deadline. Acknowledging the cold-as-ice approach, several other sources reiterated the statement. One insider called it, “a cruel but necessary evil.”
The Impact of the WGA Battle with Agencies: The AMPTP’s approach stems from the WGA’s successful battle in 2021 against talent agencies over packaging practices. This victory, in which the WGA compelled agencies to abandon packaging fees, was seen by the studios as a warning sign. They fear that giving in to the writers now would set a precedent for future negotiations with other unions, potentially leading to a cycle of strikes.
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The AMPTP’s Stance
While the AMPTP publicly refutes the idea of an “October surprise” or a deliberate dragging out of negotiations, insiders suggest otherwise. The anonymous studio sources claim that the intention is to delay talks until writers face financial strain, making them more likely to accept the studios’ terms.
“These anonymous people are not speaking on behalf of the AMPTP or member companies, who are committed to reaching a deal and getting our industry back to work,” a spokesperson for the organization says.
Writers Respond to Threat
Obviously, an article like this would not go unnoticed by striking writers so they have since responded on Twitter:
Since the WGA called for the strike, there have been no discussions between the AMPTP and the guild. The lack of direct offers from WGA leadership to resume talks is cited by sources close to the AMPTP. Meanwhile, the studios remain optimistic about the possibility of striking a deal with SAG-AFTRA in a few weeks, even if the actors join the WGA on the picket lines.
Such a deal would not restart production but could allow actors to promote projects already in the pipeline, potentially weakening the WGA’s position.
