The Writer's Strike

[King Kamala 0]

So would this affect stuff on the cable networks like HBO, cause if this stops The Wire from coming back in January someone goin' die.

 

It won't they finished filming the season about two months ago and I guess all they're doing now is editing.

[brokentusk16 0]

This is really depressing. TV could become even more of a shithole than it is already. Hopefully a miracle emerges from the meeting tomorrow.

[Mik 0]

Yeah... I'll survive, but I'm disappointed.

 

Not so much now; because while I really enjoy the TV I watch - I am going to be CRUSHED without Lost and 24, if it comes to that.

[King Kamala 0]

SNL is on for tonight by the way. But the Rock's show next week and Jonah Hill on the 17th are very likely cancelled which is really too bad as I was looking forward to both

[Jericholic82 0]

wonder if house wil lbe affected? (damnit if it is)

 

but hey these writers work their asses off, so dont be too harsh on them

 

my guess is we get tons of reality shows (although those shows have writers too dont they?)

 

fox will beg to start american idol in december probably

[slimm44 0]

fox will beg to start american idol in december probably

 

...and run 10 weeks of audition footage...yeccck.

 

I was kind of excited for the strike, but after reading about what would come of it, I too have become depressed. If it lasts as long as the one in '88 (5 months), we'll have to wait for new network prime time episodes to air after the Olympics.

[Obi Chris Kenobi 0]

Will this only affect the US mainly, with the UK getting a slight ripple effect from the US Shows it imports?

[King Kamala 0]

Yeah, well it's the Writers Guild of America going on strike.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

From AVS Forums

 

Late Night

 

"Colbert Report" and "The Daily Show" Will go into repeats immediately.

"The Tonight Show" and"The Conan O'Brien Show" Will go into repeats immediately.

"Jimmy Kimmel Live" Staffed with WGA writers, so it would probably go to repeats. But Kimmel could also decide to wing it and do the show himself.

"Nightline" Will remain live and in originals.

 

ABC

"Lost" Expected to have eight out of 16 episodes ready. Midseason, none have aired yet

"Cavemen" Expected to have 12 out of 13 episodes completed; has not received an order for a full season.

"Men in Trees" Has five episodes left over from last season, 10 new episodes shot, four more scripts to shoot; adds up to 19 out of 27 for the season.

"Cashmere Mafia" Will have seven episodes out of an order of 13.

"The View" Will continue uninterrupted, according to a spokesman.

"Dirty Sexy Money" Expected have between 11 and 13 episodes completed.

"Brothers & Sisters" Expected to have either 11 or 12 episodes completed.

"Eli Stone" Will have 13 of 13 ordered. Midseason premiere date is undetermined.

 

CBS

"Moonlight" Expected to have 11 out of 12 episodes completed; has not received an order for a full season.

"Cane" Expected to complete all 13 episodes; has not yet received an order for a full season.

"Jericho" Will have seven of seven episodes.

 

NBC

"Friday Night Lights" Expected to complete 15 of 22 episodes.

"Scrubs" Expected to complete 12 of 18 episodes.

"Journeyman" Expected to complete 13 of 13 episodes; has not yet received an order for a full season.

 

CW

"Everybody Hates Chris" Expected to complete 22 of 22 episodes.

"Gossip Girl" Expected to complete 13 of 22 episodes.

"Supernatural" Has 10-12 episodes completed;

Those shows also have roughly five scripts that are ready to shoot.

"America's Next Top Model," "Beauty and the Geek" and new shows such as "Crowned" (the mother-daughter beauty contest) Three of a number of reality shows that have already been ordered up, meaning they are covered for the rest of the season

 

Fox

"24" Will have eight or nine out of 24 episodes completed. Midseason, none have aired yet.

 

USA

"In Plain Sight" New show, episodes are nearly wrapped

"Psych" and "Monk" Enough scripts in hand to guarantee a full second half of each season

"Law and Order: Criminal Intent" Enough for first half of the season (10); the second half (12) will be affected (meaning not enough scripts to guarantee production start as scheduled.)

"Burn Notice" Scheduled to start production of Season 2 in January

"Starter Wife" Scheduled to start production in March

 

Sci-Fi

"Stargate Atlantis" Expected to go on as scheduled.

"Battlestar Galactica" Has 10 hours of episodes, plus a two hour movie to air this Fall.

"Eureka" Will be affected.

 

FX

"Thirty Days" Completed, not expected to be affected.

"Nip/Tuck" 5th season, the 22 episodes were planned for two cycles: 14 to run from now to February and eight next year. All 14 in the first cycle have been written. So, only the second cycle could be affected.

"The Shield" The final season is written, no date set for airing.

"Dirt" and "The Riches" Production is underway, and they could be affected.

"Rescue Me" 5th season, just announced, would be affected since production is expected to start in early '08.

"Damages" No word yet on whether it would be picked up

 

HBO

"Entourage" and"Big Love" Are currently in the writing stages and were scheduled to air in the summer of 2008.

"True Blood" and "12 Miles of Bad Road" Have begun production.

"The Wire" Completed and will air as scheduled.

"In Treatment" New series will air as scheduled.

 

===

 

Should the Strike go into January..rest assured America, you will still get American Idol.

 

 

[Obi Chris Kenobi 0]

So, for those shows that will have a sudden unannounced mid season break, will they have the writers have a 'backup' cliff hanger episode on hand for the strike? Example LOST, they originally wanted it to have a straight run with no breaks - hence the smaller number of episodes and it starting later on in the Fall/Winter Schedule. Do you think that last written episode will have a Cliff Hanger thrown into it to keep people hanging on during a possible strike, or will it just be whatever it was originally?

[ZGangsta 0]

Thanks for the info Marvin.

 

Thank God The Wire is done.

 

Battlestar Galactica will probably just air what is done and take a really long break between halves of the season since Sci-Fi was floating that idea already.

 

So if The Shield has finished scripts does that mean they'll finish filming them and then air them as scheduled, or do they need writers around to finish filming?

 

Sucks that the Rock's SNL is not going to happen.

[Guest Smues]

You know what would be awesome? Scab writters! Fuck the union, I want to see prime time television written by people who have no business writing television.

[milliondollarchamp 0]

I'm still most disturbed about 24. Considering their name and their concept, it's not like they can air anything less than 24 episodes. So how is that gonna work?

[Guest Pizza Hut's Game Face]

You know what would be awesome? Scab writters! Fuck the union, I want to see prime time television written by people who have no business writing television.

But there's already a lot of that as it is! But yeah, I agree. Scabs are the way. It'll be fan fiction come to life.

[slimm44 0]

I'm still most disturbed about 24. Considering their name and their concept, it's not like they can air anything less than 24 episodes. So how is that gonna work?

 

I wouldn't mind it airing during the summer, in it's entirety.

[Bruiser Chong 0]

What about The Office? That's the only show I really care about.

 

And this whole thing is silly. Why shouldn't the writers be entitled to a bigger piece of the DVD pie? Without them, there is no product to put on the DVD.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

I'm still most disturbed about 24. Considering their name and their concept, it's not like they can air anything less than 24 episodes. So how is that gonna work?

 

Its almost a blessing for 24 since Kieffer has to go to jail to serve part of his sentence anyway..

 

My guess for 24 is they air the 8 eps that are ready to air starting in January, and if they dont have episode 9 done by then (end of February?) there will probably be a break (oh my, no NON STOP ACTION !!) and they'll probably air 2 episodes a night to compensate to keep it ending before the summer. The good news for FOX is they have enough episodes of 24 to get them through February sweeps at least.

 

and heres what I dont get..there was an article that quoted the price of a DVD ($19.95) and used that as a base for what the writers currently get and what they want to get..but TV sets on DVD are usually double that, if not more.

 

 

[Yuna_Firerose 0]

Soooo....Heroes and House won't be effected? Alright, I'm cool with it, then.

[MillenniumMan831 0]

I don't see the Big Bang Theory on that list *exhales*

[slimm44 0]

Soooo....Heroes and House won't be effected? Alright, I'm cool with it, then.

 

No, no. That's not the complete affected TV show list. Obviously all prime time network shows will be affected if this drags on. Heroes has shot the 12th episode as the season finale, should the strike go past December/January. House, will likely be repeats come January.

 

I don't see the Big Bang Theory on that list *exhales*

 

They closed production on Thursday, due to the strike.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

Dont forget that a prolonged strike would also affect movies as well, just not immediately. There may be a dry spell of no new movies or really crappy rushed movies out towards the later part of next year.

 

 

[boobshaw 0]

Writer-producers caught in middle of strike

 

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Perhaps no group of Hollywood professionals faces the first screenwriters' strike in almost 20 years with greater internal conflict and angst than the scribes who produce TV shows.

 

They are trying to navigate a perilous path between allegiance to the guild that protects them and commitment to the series that they oversee and often also create.

 

It comes down to nagging questions of responsibility vs. conscience, and there appeared to be no easy answers as the Writers Guild of America began striking just after midnight on Monday following months of negotiations with the studios.

 

Should writer-showrunners cross the WGA picket line to report for work, knowing they leave themselves open to disciplinary action --including termination -- from their production company if they don't?

 

"We're caught in a very tough spot," said Carter Bays, co-creator and executive producer with Craig Thomas of the CBS comedy "How I Met Your Mother." "We really are right smack at the intersection of unsolvable forces that we care about very much."

 

Then there are the gray areas that have the Directors Guild of America, WGA and the studios squabbling. How much of their producing duties can showrunners perform without it bleeding over into writing territory? Does editing for time count as writing? Does working from home count the same as working in the office? Bays said he had also seen no clear line yet drawn on the concept of what beyond script rewrites constitutes writing.

 

"So much of what takes place on the set and in the editing room constitutes writing, including creating jokes while in editing," he said. "So if you're editing, you have to shut off the creative part of that process."

 

Several of TV's top showrunners expressed anguish and uncertainty at the road immediately ahead.

 

Greg Berlanti, who executive produces three ABC series and runs one of them, freshman "Eli Stone," noted that while he didn't intend to cross any picket lines, "there's still the concern about what you can and cannot do to keep your young show afloat. You hope you have the right support system in place to keep cutting episodes, but one of the open questions is whether cutting for time is still considered writing. I'm not sure where I land on that myself, to be honest. I mean, no one would cringe more than the writers if we're forced to shoot material that's not ready."

 

Less conflicted on the editing issue was Shawn Ryan, creator-executive producer for FX's "The Shield" and executive producer of CBS's "The Unit," who serves on the WGA negotiating committee.

 

"I consider live editing to be writing," he said. "There are certain things I will do to fulfill my (production) duties. But a lot of what I do is writing. And I see myself as a writer first."

 

"Scrubs" creator-executive producer Bill Lawrence also saw himself as a writer first, a producer second.

 

"I may make some cuts on episodes, but if I do, it'll be from home so I never cross any picket lines," he said. "I'll make sure I don't show up and break any rules."

 

Things were even more complicated for Tim Kring, creator-executive producer of NBC's sci-fi drama "Heroes," which has four episodes in various stages of production that he hopes to complete despite the strike. It will bring the series to 11 completed installments for the season and fresh episodes through mid-December.

 

"For me, the primary issue is crossing the picket line in order to do my job," Kring said. "To date, I have not fully decided how I'm going to handle it. It depends on my reaction on the day I have to drive in. And no, I don't have the blessing of my studio not to cross the WGA picketers. It's a very tough position to be in."

 

While he won't do any rewrites, Kring believed he has the freedom to "fulfill all production duties that don't involve writing," including giving notes on cuts. "You can't add words, but you can cut for time," he said.

 

"House" executive producer Katie Jacobs wouldn't decide what she would do production-wise until there were more detailed guidelines.

 

"There is so much gray area right now that we're just waiting until we get clarification on what's right to do and what's wrong to do during a strike," she said. "It's new territory for all of us."

 

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter

 

That article brings up a good point. There are a lot of people caught in the middle of this that have to make decisions and may be blacklisted based on what they choose to do.

[Darthtiki 0]

Today is supposedly the day principal photography is to begin on the finale of the Shield. However Shawn Ryan will not be present. Link

 

[boobshaw 0]

Picketer injured in Los Angeles

 

Just minutes into the strike, the labor unrest has turned violent at one picket line: A writer for "Talkshow With Spike Feresten" was struck by a sedan trying to cross the picket line at Sunset-Gower Studios early this morning, witnesses said.

 

The writer, identified as Tom Johnson, suffered a leg injury and was taken away in a wheelchair by paramedics. The incident occurred shortly after 9:30 a.m. at the studios off Sunset Boulevard when a driver in a Black Honda Element drove up to the employee parking lot on Gower Street, where picketers were marching. According to witnesses, the driver got out of the vehicle and began threatening to run over anyone who didn't get out of his way. Witnesses said he then got back in the car and drove forward, hitting Johnson.

 

The striking writers descended on the vehicle and took away the driver's keys. Johnson's black tennis shoe was still lodged under the front passenger tire as he was taken away.

 

The driver, who witnesses said worked for Raleigh, was escorted from the scene by studio employees. Police had been notified, according to those at the scene.

 

-- Greg Braxton

 

There is a fantastic blog covering the strike on the LA Times website.

[MarvinisaLunatic 0]

One of the late night guys needs to do a show with out writers to restore faith in the idea that someone can be funny without having to have all of their material written and approved of by someone else.

 

 

[Black Lushus 0]

yay on The Wire!

 

awww nuts on Nip/Tuck, Heroes, Big Love and Entourage!

[Craig Th 0]

Today is supposedly the day principal photography is to begin on the finale of the Shield. However Shawn Ryan will not be present. Link

Wow, that is interesting. I don't know how he isn't going to be there.

[Prophet of Mike Zagurski 0]

Guys like Jay Leno, Letterman, etc are both hosts and writers. They can do interviews and have musical performances but monologues are a gray area.

[milliondollarchamp 0]

Shawn Ryan is definitely taking a risk by not working -- he has a lot to lose, and technically could be fired. Brave move, and I'd like to see how many other hyphenates will do the same.

[Celtic Guardian 0]

What about The Office? That's the only show I really care about.

 

You're really not going to like this.

 

Excerpted from TV Week:

 

“The Office” showrunner Greg Daniels has joined the picket line at his production company’s Van Nuys location in an attempt to shut down production of his show.

 

“We’re trying to shut down ‘The Office,’” Mr. Daniels said. “We have the star of our show and the entire writing staff behind us.”

 

Mr. Daniels says he arrived at 4:15 this morning and none of the show's actors have crossed the line. “The Office” cast includes several performers who are also writers on the show, like B.J. Novak, Mindy Kaling and Paul Lieberstein. “Office” star Steve Carell is a WGA member and is not showing up for work as well, he said.

 

Mr. Daniels is one of many writer-producers facing the decision this morning whether to continue acting as producers on their shows. Sources say a group of top showrunners met this weekend and largely decided to not cross the picket lines. Studios maintain showrunners should continue working to fulfill their production duties.