Producers Lock Out Writers

It may not be a full blown lockout, but producers, and the suits at networks and studios have definitely begun what appears to be a partial lockout of writers in advance of the expiration of the WGA contract at the end of the month.

The suits and other producers have told all the writers they don't need their services at all until a new contract is in place. In a report in Variety, one unnamed agent said, "The sense I get is that the very immediate writing work is still getting done, but anything longer-term is on hold."

That means if something can get done by the end of the month you still can work, but if it is going to take beyond that time frame, then just stay home.

This is could last awhile, but studios have been preparing for it and started filming television shows early just so more episodes could be filmed. Most shows have more than half their seasons filmed which would get you to Christmas, or maybe slightly longer. After that, there will probably be several weeks of repeats and if there is still no contract in place, then you will be seeing lots of Movies of The Week and reality programs which require no "writers."

After meeting yesterday for talks, Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers President Nicholas Counter accused the WGA of presenting "an untenable proposal to double the homevideo residual using specious numbers, a revisionist view of the bargaining history and a complete disregard for the costs and deficits that producers must bear."

The talks sound fun don't they.