LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Film and television writers voted decisively on Tuesday to lift their 100-day-old strike against major studios and return to work on Wednesday, formally ending the worst labor clash to hit Hollywood in 20 years.
The outcome, while not unexpected, was greeted with relief by an entertainment community shaken for months by rancor and uncertainty, especially in the television industry, where thousands of production workers ended up furloughed because of the strike.
WGA members will vote later on a proposed three-year contract, which provides new payments to writers for work streamed on the Internet and doubles rates they earn for films and TV shows resold as Internet downloads. It also extends the union's contract to cover made-for-Web content.
The back-to-work order was approved by 92.5 percent of the Writers Guild of America members who cast ballots in Los Angeles and New York two days after union leaders voted to endorse their contract settlement with the studios.
Guild leaders immediately sent an e-mail letter to some 10,500 writers who walked off the job on November 5 instructing them to return to work on Wednesday.
"The strike is over," WGA West President Patric Verrone declared at a news conference at the Writers Guild Theater in Beverly Hills, which served as one of the polling stations. "Our members have voted, and writers can go back to work."
A total of 3,775 WGA members took part in the vote, down from the record turnout of more than 5,500 who voted in October when writers authorized the union to call a strike.
Compensating writers for work in new media proved to be the main sticking point in the confrontation between WGA leaders and the eight major entertainment companies represented by the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
"This is a day of relief and optimism for everyone in the entertainment industry," the top executives of those companies said in a joint statement after the WGA vote was announced.
Last month, the companies concluded a separate labor pact with Hollywood directors, whose deal helped writers and studios overcome a lengthy stalemate in their talks. The WGA settlement was patterned closely after terms accepted by the directors.
Verrone reiterated that the WGA deal was not "perfect" but stressed key gains made in the burgeoning arena of digital media. He also acknowledged it could take five to 15 years for the fruits of the new contract to become fully apparent.
"I think it's going to take a long time to really look back and see how much the Internet is worth," he said.
ACTORS UP NEXT
The potential for further labor strife still hangs over Hollywood. The Screen Actors Guild, which represents some 120,000 film and TV performers, sees its contract with the studios come up for renewal in June, and SAG leaders have vowed to be aggressive at the bargaining table.
For now, however, the prevailing mood was one of relief, although a return to business as usual will come gradually.
The strike threw the US television industry into turmoil, derailed several Hollywood movie productions and idled thousands of entertainment workers -- from actors and directors to hairstylists, set designers and clerks.
The impact included more than $2 billion in lost wages and earnings in the Los Angeles area alone, more than half from damage to businesses like limousine services, florists, caterers, and restaurants, according to official estimates.
The strike also overshadowed the industry's annual awards season, forcing cancellation of the Golden Globes ceremony after actors threatened to boycott the event rather than cross picket lines to attend.
The settlement comes just in time for producers of the Oscar telecast, which is scheduled for February 24. Oscar writers now have just 11 days to produce material that normally takes many weeks.
TV studios and networks are girding to resume work on dozens of scripted prime-time comedies and dramas knocked off the air by the strike, hoping to salvage what remains of the current broadcast season. However, idled production crews will remain sidelined for weeks while new scripts are prepared.
Story by Steve Gorman (Additional reporting by Dean Goodman, editing by Todd Eastham and Bill Trott)
Comments (89)
glad its over
Knew the Academy Awards Show had to go on and the writer's strike would be over! Let's hope they got what they needed . Remember this is America and we could see what happens to shows without the writers.
The only good news to come out from "the strike"
That's Great News. I just Hope we don't lose any of our favorite show. It doesn't look good for a lot of the new ones.
THANK GOODNESS!!!! its BEEN long ENOUGH!!!
I am hoping scripts are not slapped together just to make deadlines
Glad to see it end, and that both sides will get something for their bargaining over their shared investments, . . but I can't help but feel that the guild may have spurred the corporations into changing how they do business in more ways than one. I look for them to change the past years model of show ordering, season planning, and multi-country show tapping. As for the actors, the union may put forth an aggressive posture, but I think both sides will think back on these past few months and concede a few give-me's in order to not repeat this audience losing era in tv/movie history. They know the video game industry lurks in the shadows to steal more of their thunder, and studios know that even reality tv can plug a few holes left by scripted tv (not as well).moreless
YEAH!!!!!!
I hope now they can go on with LOST episodes of season 4 on ABC.
With any luck the writers haven't just been sitting around this whole time and already have episodes ready to be polished up and put into production.
Good! but.... my guess is that by the time they'll start putting things in motion for production it will be June and the SAG will want more also, which may also cause troubles . . .
hope the writers got what they wanted
Now can we have Journeyman back... PLEASE !!!!!!
Woo Hoo!
Ohh I'm I so happy this is great news...
great finally!
old news but still good
Yep. Great to see its all over hey.
I am so happy! I am so happy! I am so happy!
I think I will do the dance of joy!
WOOT!
Jolly good. Now lets get Battlestar Galactica and Avatar the Last Airbender rolling again.
good ! you cant have no movies or show without writers ,duh.
FINALLY!!!!!!!!!! HURRAY!!!! THANKS GOD FOR THIS!!!THE SHOW MUST GO ON!!!!!!!I WANT NEW EPISODE!!!1 JAJAJAJA
Great news!!!
This is great news.. Now let's get writing!!
It's about time! Wonder if everyone will return though. Thought they would have learned with the last strike that some audience members won't be back. (it is said they lost 10% of their audience because of the last strike and they haven't returned).I think everyone's playing Playstation instead of watching tv!
:? A lot of folx don't seem too thrilled...
About time.
Thank God it's finally over!!!!
YAY!!!
Woohoo! Finally!
Hooray!!!!!I'm so happy!!!
All I can say is finally.
Woooo thank god!!!
Took them long enough!
*eye roll*
omg thank you!
Thank God it's finally over
Oh yeah! Can't wait for the new episodes to be made!
Finally! Now we can get our shows back!
Waheyy :) Hope They Got What They Wanted!!!
AWESOME!!!!!! I heard on Leno and Conan last night. But at the same time i'm kinda bummed, Conan went totally off script in recent weeks and he was funny especially last night when he went under the studio seats.
100 days later.....
thanks for taking 14 weeks to decide
I wish they had waited until the week after the Oscars, so the broadcast would be short, and we wouldn't have to hear all those s#@&y jokes...
luv2doxies, sadly my friend, 24 won't return this year because the producers say 24 works best in 24 hours and they feel the show won't be ready by september/October so it will return in Jan 2009. It's like we missed out on day 7 and will skip to day 8 (altough it is day 7) I wonder if we still will get another 3 seasons as the contract was until 2010. Can't wait for more LOST as I'm lost without that show and I'm so desperate for those Desperate Housewives.
"The settlement comes just in time for producers of the Oscar telecast, which is scheduled for February 24. Oscar writers now have just 11 days to produce material that normally takes many weeks."
I like that. Let's just hope Sweeney Todd wins any of its nominations now that the strike is over. :)
YAY, maybe now they'll bring back the 4400
The best news i've heard in a long time!!
*does the happy dance*
Yeah!
Finally!