The WGA has got studios worried over a possible writers' strike next year. The WGA's leaders have refused to meet with industry leaders in January to jump start talks over the upcoming contract renewal. The current contract expires on October 31, 2007, and the WGA says it won't be ready to talk until September. It's a tactical move that has made the producers very unhappy. Variety reports:
"I'm very disappointed," said Nick Counter, president of the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers. "It's in the best interests of all concerned to get this resolved as soon as possible."
On the film side, the delay means an acceleration of production and stockpiling of scripts, followed by a "de facto strike" next summer as studios stop launching film production once they can no longer be wrapped by Oct. 31. In TV, the prospect of a work stoppage means studios and networks will try to shoot more episodes of scripted series and will be less inclined to launch series while planning for more reality, news and sports programming.
Counter went public Monday with his frustration over the guild's refusal to start talks sooner. That prompted a statement by WGA West exec director David Young.
"The WGA will be prepared to commence negotiations in the summer of 2007, well in advance of the November contract expiration," he said. "We are currently meeting with our members on contract issues, as well as continuing our dialogue with sister guilds in Hollywood. The WGA has always worked with the companies to make sure that all writers are covered by a guild agreement with proper compensation and residuals for their work. We fully expect that a fair agreement will be reached in our upcoming negotiation," Young said.
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Some execs attributed the WGA's move to simple gamesmanship, designed to show studios and networks that the scribes are serious about getting a bigger slice of the pie.
"It's like a batter stepping out of the box with the bases loaded, just to rattle the pitcher," one top agent said.
Other speculation for the delay centered on the WGA betting that the extra time will clarify the now-murky outlook on which digital delivery platform will become dominant in coming years.
But for now, pushing back the start of negotiations represents one more big step in convincing studios and networks that a strike is coming, according to "Law & Order" producer Dick Wolf.
"The guild seems determined to ratchet up the likelihood of a strike," he told Daily Variety. "It's a Neolithic tactic, but it's a clear message that they want to have a work stoppage. I don't have to be the Delphic oracle to have seen this coming."
Wolf said he won't lose personally in a strike since his shows are already syndicated. He added WGA leaders appear to be overestimating the potential revenues from downloads of TV shows.
"I'm telling everyone who will listen, this isn't the 1950s when TV was growing," Wolf said. "A strike is like shooting arrows into a stumbling animal."
Ah, the Hollywood negotiating season is upon us. When writers and producers alike work diligently to see who can use the more dramatic language to describe their opponents' nefarious bargaining tactics. So, let's see. We have Dick Wolf fearlessly calling the WGA's tactics "Neolithic" and telling everyone that although he's no "Delphic oracle" he saw this strike coming. He also gets points for the "shooting arrows into a stumbling animal" metaphor in which he neatly called all striking writers a bunch of animal torturers.
On the other hand we have a "top agent" who used a tired baseball metaphor.
And the WGA which used plain, sensible language to describe its position in a straight-forward, businesslike manner. Clearly, Dick Wolfe won this round. Nicely played, Dick.
