Boy, oh boy, Disney and Netflix can’t seem to stop caring for their fans. So, when it became clear that they can’t just create villains like Cruella and Frank Underwood, they decided to become one. The Writers strike, which has already passed the hundred-day mark, is yet to reach a point where it will be resolved, and it might be the Studios taking it to the last round.
The negotiations have been going on for some time now but feel like a boring draw in chess as the studios are busy thinking about how it will affect their image. It is indeed the truth, as this is being told from the side of WGA.
Though in the recent AMPTP proposal, they moved a bit from their old statements, it is far from what is justified and what WGA wants.
The AMPTP proposal has multiple issues. Leaving the decision to showrunners can lead to studio pressure against hiring more writers. Also, the definition of “showrunner” varies; some streamers make it a non-writing role, hiring a “head writer” instead, sidelining writers from decisions. The proposal seems to aim for a standard writing room size, ignoring WGA members’ concerns about room size of the group.
Also, the proposal offers up to 20 consecutive weeks of work, which doesn’t really offer a solution to the problem.
Now, when it comes to monetary issues, the writers don’t have the biggest of demands as the spine of any show; that is extremely justified.
The writers are asking for around $72M and $65M from Disney and Netflix, which is literally 0.088% and 0.206% of the annual revenue of the studios. And beyond all this, studios are also concerned that if they agree to the proposal, it will fuel other future protests.
