The Pen is Mightier: Writers Prevail in the Strike

Writers breathe life into the characters we hold dear and allow us the option to binge-watch 20 episodes of Grey’s Anatomy in one night—or not. Nowadays, shorter series have become the norm due to the fast-paced, binge-watching trend fostered by streaming platforms.[1] With shorter seasons, narratives are more streamlined and have less filler episodes.[2] Shorter seasons also means writers get paid less for each job.[3] As seasons become shorter, the writers' work schedule, which used to span 40 weeks per year, has now been reduced to just 20-24 weeks.[4] Consequently, these writers are compelled to seek multiple jobs throughout the year to maintain the level of income they once enjoyed.[5] 

On Sunday, September 24, 2023, the second-longest strike in Hollywood history officially ended.[6] So, what was this writers’ strike all about? 

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is a labor union representing writers of motion pictures, telecision, radio and internet programming.[7] Additionally, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) is responsible for negotiating on behalf of hundreds of production companies like Disney, Netflix, and Amazon.[8] Determining fair compensation for actors on streaming services was one of the sticking points in the negotiation between the WGA and the AMPTP.[9] Despite the enjoyment viewers derive from streaming services such as Netflix and Hulu, many writers argue that they are not receiving fair residual payments when their shows are streamed on these platforms.[10] Shows or movies that air directly on streaming platforms generally earn writers smaller residual payments.[11] When writing for a streaming service, writers receive two fixed residuals, one for domestic and one for foreign streaming, with no increase in pay for a show’s success.[12] However, median weekly writer pay has declined 23% over the last decade.[13] The move to streaming also negatively impacts actors. Many actors receive low residual payments, with one actor reporting that her initial residual payments from the TV series’ Black Lightning and Greenleaf amounted to a range of $3,000 to $4,000 each.[14] The same actor received an even smaller initial residual check for her supporting role in Stranger Things, in the amount of  $325.[15]

Another reason for the Hollywood writers strike is the unregulated use of AI technology, which has become a growing threat to writers. Although AI may not currently write consistently engaging scripts, the WGA is concerned that it may gain this ability in the future and replace them.[16] One concern is that if a software program was used to draft a script, then the creators of that program could claim part of the credit and possibly part of the residuals.[17] This could immensely reduce writers’ pay and is why the WGA is committed to making sure that studios provide fair compensation to writers that aligns with the studios' budgets and success in hiring them.[18] 

Following the union’s leadership decision to end the strike and ratify the contract, the WGA released a simplified memorandum of the agreement and stated, “We can say, with great pride, that this deal is exceptional—with meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership.”[19] The three-year deal includes increases to minimum wage and compensation, improved terms for lengths of employment, better residuals and terms to address the anticipated threat of artificial intelligence.[20] 

The memorandum also specifies that the WGA has the authority to declare that the use of writers’ material for training AI is prohibited by law.[21] This stems from a major concern that AI models might infringe on copyright laws by using writers’ works to train them.[22] For example, actor Sarah Silverman sued Open AI and Meta for copyright infringement because Open AI’s ChatGPT is able to come up with a detailed synopsis of her entire book, The Bedwetter.[23]  Silverman’s lawsuit says her memoir was copied “without consent, without credit and without compensation.”[24] There is doubt as to whether Silverman could prove successful in her lawsuit because the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2016 that summarizing texts did not violate copyright law.[25] 

Another term in the new agreement includes a 12.5% increase in pay that would start with 5% to start once the contract is ratified.[26] The writers will receive increases of 4% and 2.5% in the following years.[27] Writers have also achieved a significant 76% bump in residuals for foreign streaming.[28] As per the WGA, this increase will raise their Netflix residuals to $32,830 for a single hour-long episode, up from $18,684.[29] Also, writers will be eligible for a “viewership-based streaming bonus” that can range from $9,000 to $40,500.[30]

The recent Hollywood writers’ strike has illuminated the dynamic shifts in the entertainment industry, driven by changing viewing habits, compensation struggles, and the looming presence of AI.  While the strike has come to an end with a promising three-year agreement, these issues are far from resolved. The entertainment world is at a crossroads, and the industry’s ability to adapt to these challenges will shape the future of content creation and the livelihoods of those who make it happen. 

[1] Lauren Prastien, Platforms Are Letting Us Binge-Watch, But Maybe They Shouldn’t, Carnegie Mellon Univ. (Apr. 17, 2019), https://www.cmu.edu/news/stories/archives/2019/april/binge-watching.html.

[2] Tiffany Beverley, Why TV Show Seasons Are So Much Shorter Than They Used To Be, Screenrant (May 13, 2023), https://screenrant.com/why-tv-show-seasons-shorter-reason/#:~:text=The%20Rise%20Of%20Streaming%20Encouraged,shorter%20television%20seasons%20were%20encouraged.

[3] Writers Are Not Keeping Up, WGA Contract 2023 (Mar. 14, 2023), https://www.wgacontract2023.org/updates/bulletins/writers-are-not-keeping-up.

[4] Id.

[5] Id.

[6] Alissa Wilkinson, The Hollywood writers’ strike is over – and they won big, Vox (Sept. 28, 2023), https://www.vox.com/culture/2023/9/24/23888673/wga-strike-end-sag-aftra-contract.

[7] What Is the Guild?, Writers Guild of America East, https://www.wgaeast.org/what-is-the-guild/#:~:text=The%20Writers%20Guild%20of%20America%2C%20East%20is%20a%20labor%20union,%2C%20radio%2C%20and%20the%20internet (last visited Oct. 17, 2023).

[8] Katie Kilkenny, Exasperated Producers Say It Louder: We’re Not The AMPTP, The Hollywood Reporter (Oct. 10, 2023), https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/producers-ask-amptp-name-change-1235614521/.

[9] David Robb, Are Streaming Residuals Being Slashed? As WGA’s Own Data Shows, It’s Complicated, Deadline (Apr. 14, 2023), https://deadline.com/2023/04/hollywood-strike-streaming-residuals-wga-producers-1235325130/.

[10] Id.

[11] Id.

[12] Callum Wells, ‘It’s not possible!’ Stranger Things creators confirm production on season five has been delayed by the Hollywood Writers’ Strike, Daily Mail (May 7, 2023), https://www.dailymail.co.uk/tvshowbiz/article-12056249/Stranger-Things-season-five-delayed-Hollywood-Writers-strike.html.

[13] Sarah Grillo and Hope King, Striking numbers: Writers work less with streaming TV, Axios (Jul. 19, 2023), https://www.axios.com/2023/07/19/wga-strike-streaming-tv-pay.

[14] Olivia Grant, SAG-AFTRA strike hits Boston, The Bay State Banner (Sept. 13, 2023), https://www.baystatebanner.com/2023/09/13/sag-aftra-strike-hits-boston/.

[15] Id.

[16] Alissa Wilkinson, Hollywood’s writers are on strike. Here’s why that matters., Vox (Jul. 13, 2023, 4:16pm EDT), https://www.vox.com/culture/23696617/writers-strike-wga-2023-explained-residuals-streaming-ai.

[17] Id.

[18] Id.

[19] Wilkinson, supra note 6.

[20] Id.

[21] Id.

[22] Yusra Farzan, Writers Say AI Terms in WGA Deal Set Guardrails For The Industry, LAist (Sept. 28, 2023), https://laist.com/news/arts-and-entertainment/writers-say-ai-terms-in-wga-deal-set-guardrails-for-the-industry.

[23] Matt O’Brien, Sarah Silverman and novelists sue ChatGPT-maker OpenAI for ingesting their books, Associated Press (Jul. 12, 2023), https://apnews.com/article/sarah-silverman-suing-chatgpt-openai-ai-8927025139a8151e26053249d1aeec20.

[24] Id.

[25] Victoria Bekiempis, Can Sarah Silverman’s AI Lawsuit Save Us From Robot Overlords?, Vulture (Aug. 11, 2023), https://www.vulture.com/article/sarah-silverman-openai-meta-lawsuit-explainer.html.

[26] Matthew Rodriguez and Dean Fioresi, WGA ends strike, releases details on tentative deal with studios, CBS Los Angeles, (updated on Sep. 27, 2023), https://www.cbsnews.com/losangeles/news/wga-ends-strike-releases-details-on-tentative-deal-with-studios-writers-hollywood/.

[27] Id.

[28] Id.

[29] Id.

[30] Id.