laitimes

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

The author of this article is @Ghost Foot Seven of the Xiaowan family

The only purpose of movies is to make life more interesting than movies

Recently, domestic theaters have gradually become popular with the release of many blockbusters, and Hollywood is just as lively, but the excitement is another matter: the screenwriters are on strike again.

The strike, which began on May 2, has only lasted for just over a week, but it has already had a considerable impact.

Today Xiaowan will talk about Hollywood screenwriters, why don't you want to go to work again?

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

Speaking of screenwriting strikes, there have been many times in Hollywood history.

From the 60s to the 80s to the new century, the screenwriters' strikes never stopped, and each time for the same reasons. Simply put, the screenwriters are calling for higher and fairer treatment and compensation.

The 1961 strike demanded higher pensions, the 1980s strike demanded a redistribution of the proceeds from pay-TV, and the strikes of the streaming age demanded that streaming platforms respect the work of screenwriters and provide adequate pay.

The question is, why are it always the screenwriters who strike?

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

Because in the Hollywood production model with the producer as the absolute center, screenwriters have always been less "important" positions, but the screenwriter's work is the "cornerstone" of the entire industry.

From movies and TV series, to variety shows, talk shows, and galas, the entertainment industry that requires a lot of content is almost all built on the writer's pen, and because of this, the screenwriter's "more work" and "less gain" form a strong contrast.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

Large awards ceremonies, including the Oscars, rely on the creation of screenwriters

With the rise of streaming media, screenwriters are squeezed like workers on the assembly line, producing a large amount of content, but the salary has not only not increased, but has ushered in a decline because of the "large quantity and excellent".

Coupled with the recent hot ChatGPT, many people realize that AI even has the opportunity to replace the work of screenwriters in the foreseeable future, which further aggravates the anxiety of the screenwriting industry and the contradictions with other departments.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

AI-produced trailer for "Wes Anderson's version of Harry Potter"

This year, negotiations between the Writers Guild of America (WGA) and the Motion Picture and Television Producers Union (AMPTP) broke down, and the guild announced a strike starting May 2.

The effect is, of course, immediate, first of all, a number of talk shows announced the suspension of broadcasting, including "Chicken Feather Show", "Late Night Show", etc., can only broadcast previous programs to fill the gap, variety show "Saturday Night Live" announced that it was not broadcast, and then the MTV Awards also canceled the live broadcast and changed to a recorded broadcast.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

A series of popular talk shows have recently faced discontinuation

A few days ago, as the strike continued, the impact gradually spread to the film and television projects in the pipeline.

For example, the first is the new version of "Blade" that Marvel is pre-producing, this superhero film is the last work of Marvel's fifth phase, and it has been announced to be suspended.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

"Blade" has already stopped work once due to the change of director, and after several twists and turns, it was originally planned to start shooting next month, but now it can only be suspended due to the impact of the strike that does not know how long it will last. The film was previously scheduled to be released on September 6, 2024, and it is unknown whether it will be postponed.

In terms of series, a large number of popular series in filming were affected by the strike, including Marvel's new drama "Daredevil: Rebirth", and the Game of Thrones spin-off series "Knights of the Seven Kingdoms" have stopped, if the strike continues, it will definitely have an impact on subsequent development.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?
Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

The second season of the popular drama "Life Cutting" and "The Last of the Survivors" was impacted

The second season of the popular "The Last of Life" series at the beginning of the year, as well as the second season of "Life Cutting", the third season of "Desperate Writer", and the third season of "Elementary School" have all suspended production or filming, and the final season of "Stranger Things" has also been forced to stop work, and it is difficult to say whether it can catch the broadcast time.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

The Duffy brothers announced the suspension of production of Stranger Things

At present, the main impact of this strike is still in the TV program, followed by the production of dramas, and the impact on the film is the least for the time being.

But this is only the situation after a week of strikes, and it does not seem that this strike will end anytime soon.

During this time, many well-known film and television industry practitioners, including George M. Smith, author of "A Song of Ice and Fire". R· R. Martin and director Martin Scorsese both posted in support of the strike, and brothers Christopher Nolan and Jonathan Nolan personally went to Paramount to join in the signs.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

The Nolan brothers went to the scene of the strike to support

According to previous negotiations, the Writers Guild wants to earn $429 million a year for all its authors, while the Producers Union is only willing to pay $86 million.

This gap will be difficult to negotiate for a while.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

The last mass strike by Hollywood screenwriters, perhaps remembered by many fans, was the 2007-2008 general strike, which lasted 100 days and caused more than $2 billion in damage.

A similar pattern to this one is affected first by talk shows, then by dramas, and finally by movies.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

"Breaking Bad"

A series of works that have now become classics, including "Finding the Bones", "Criminal Minds", "Breaking Bad", "Desperate Housewives", "Lost", "Prison Break", "Grey's Anatomy" and other dramas have been delayed or reduced in the number of episodes, or barely maintained without a screenwriter, resulting in a decline in quality.

"The Big Bang Theory" just aired in 2007, and the first season ran for 8 episodes before it suffered a writers' strike, and the leading actors once thought that the show would end there.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

The Big Bang Theory

The movie aspect is not easy either.

"Star Trek", "The Da Vinci Code" sequel "Angels and Devils", "Transformers 2" are all affected.

"007: Quantum of Solace" had not yet completed the script, and the ongoing strike caused 007's actor Daniel Craig to have to personally go down as a screenwriter to ensure the smooth progress of the project.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

"007: Quantum of Solace"

At that time, there was also a DC blockbuster directed by George Miller ("Mad Max" series) in preparation, called "Justice League: Mortal", it is said that the casting has been completed, which may have been the first super-hero assembly in the history of the super-hero, and finally aborted under the influence of various factors such as the screenwriter's strike.

What George Miller's version of "Justice League" will look like will never be known

Further on, the 1988 strike lasted more than 150 days and affected works including "007's License to Kill" and Tim Burton's version of "Batman", with an impact of more than $500 million.

Obviously, in the current complex environment of the global entertainment industry, the post-epidemic era, the impact of streaming media and technological change, this Hollywood screenwriters' strike will not only affect the US entertainment industry, but also cause greater losses than previous ones.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

At the same time, the screenwriters' strike is not only a "harm" to the producer and capital, for the screenwriters who already have little income, the strike means zero income, which actually constitutes their life pressure.

In the end, the screenwriters' strike is a huge loss for both parties, and for the audience, they may also face the regret that their favorite works have been stopped.

Hollywood screenwriters went on strike, these works want yellow?

We will continue to see how this strike will develop and how it will affect the film and television industry, which has only begun to recover with great difficulty.

Read on