New York () — Remember when a new TV season started in September? This year it will not be like that.
Are you eagerly awaiting the big-budget blockbusters coming to theaters next summer? That may not happen.
Have you heard great things about “Breaking Bad” or “The Wire” but never seen them? Or perhaps something more recent like “The Last of Us,” which has just been nominated for more than two dozen Emmy Awards? This is your chance.
And by the way, it might be a while before you know how many of those Emmys “The Last of Us” finally takes home. The awardslike many other things in the TV and movie industry, is also very uncertain right now.
But what you can expect are more reality shows, and maybe game shows, and probably more opportunities to binge shows that have already premiered on your favorite streaming service.
That’s because some 160,000 actors who belong to SAG-AFTRA are about to go on strike, joining the more than 11,000 members of the Writers Guild of America who have been on strike since May 2.
Prepare for the long haul
Of course, some movies are already finished, like “Barbie” and “Oppenheimer,” and ready to be released in theaters. And, like automakers or other manufacturers trying to hoard extra stock before the strike deadline expires, some streaming services have braced themselves with new movies and shows.
“We had to plan for the worst. And so we have a pretty solid release schedule that’s going to take us a long time,” Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said in April, just before the start of the writers’ strike.
But that flow of new series is already diminishing little by little.
Data from filming permits in California indicates that production of most series and movies has already been halted due to the writers’ strike. Although movies often have a script when they start shooting, revisions and changes require hiring a screenwriter while production is underway.
Now that the actors are also going on strike, most of the remaining production will be halted. The exception will be independent films that are not associated with any of the big studios.
One group of television shows that will continue to produce new episodes is traditional daytime soap operas. The writers of these shows are typically not syndicated, and the syndicated actors work under a different contract than the one that expired this Wednesday at 11:59 pm PDT.
However, most of the other players will stop working as soon as the union’s governing board votes in favor of the strike late on Thursday. Affiliates have already voted 98% in favor of authorizing it.
The actors will not advertise the films that are released, nor will they appear on the red carpet of the premieres, nor will they give interviews on podcasts. Of course, the writers’ strike meant the immediate stoppage of new episodes of American late night shows, so the opportunity for such publicity was already limited.
How long will it last?
What is not clear is how long this situation will last. Some industry insiders hope that with writers and actors on leave at the same time, this will put pressure on studios and streaming services to improve their offerings and get everyone back to work as soon as possible. The last time the Screenwriters and the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), the forerunner of SAG-AFTRA, went on strike at the same time was in 1960, so long ago that Ronald Reagan was the president of the SAG. who led that strike.
However, everyone agrees that the industry is undergoing unprecedented change, as the ways in which audiences consume shows are changing rapidly, and the economy with it.
Bob Iger, CEO of Disney, does not seem to suggest that there will be a short-term solution, in statements made on Thursday morning.
“They’re adding to a number of challenges that this business already faces that are frankly very disruptive,” Iger, who will receive more than $25 million in compensation this year, said of SAG-AFTRA and the Writers Guild. in an interview on CNBC. “You have to be realistic about the business environment and what this business can deliver.”
But the unions say their members suffer from changes in the business, such as the reduction in the amount of broadcast waste in the streaming era, and are pushed to the point where they can’t accept what studios and streaming services are saying. streaming offer.
“Studios and streaming services have implemented unilateral changes to our industry’s business model, while at the same time insisting on keeping our contracts frozen in amber,” said a statement from Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union’s chief negotiator. issued this Thursday morning. “Studios and streamers underestimated the determination of our members, as they are about to fully find out.”
So, don’t expect to see the return of many of your favorite series soon.
