Writers strike 2023 explained: Why the WGA walked out, what it means for TV and film

Hollywood writers have left their keyboards behind.

At 12:01am Tuesday, the Writers Guild of America, the union representing most of Hollywood's scribes behind your favorite TV shows and films, went on strike. The board of directors for the WGA, which includes both a West and an East branch, voted unanimously to strike after talks between the guild and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), which bargains on behalf of the nine largest studios, failed to reach a contract. Writers, they said, are facing an "existential crisis."

If it feels like a TV repeat, that's because it's all happened before. For 100 days in 2007 and 2008, writers went on strike, bringing the entertainment industry to a halt. Now those behind everything from network series like CBS' "NCIS" to Marvel movies to streaming series including Netflix's "Stranger Things" will hit the picket lines for the first time in 15 years.

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Hollywood haschanged significantly since 2008, led by the rise of streaming services. This has upended the traditional pay structure in the industry and, as the WGA argues, has led more writers longer for less pay (streaming series often have longer production schedules but fewer episodes per season, which is how their pay is calculated). At the same time, entertainment conglomerates are seeing financial losses, cutting jobs and have been shelving TV shows and movies.

We answer every question about the strike.

Why did the WGA go on strike?

Writers are primarily looking for more compensation, with many pointing to the rise of streaming as having a negative effect on their earnings. In TV, writers are often paid per episode, and where a broadcast series once produced 22 or more installments each season, streaming series are more typically eight to 13 episodes.

Residuals or royalties, which earn writers, actors and producers (among others) money after a TV show's debut when it airs or streams elsewhere, are lower for streaming shows than for broadcast shows that air reruns on cable or syndication.These lower minimums were established when streaming was in its infancy, and because streamers often insist on exclusivity, limiting the distribution of their shows elsewhere. In their pattern of demands, the guild also asked studios to standardize compensation forscreenwriting – regardless of whether a film is released theatrically or on streaming – and increase studio contributions to the pension plan and health fund.

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In a statement announcing the strike, the WGA said, "The companies' behavior has created a gig economy inside a union workforce, and their immovable stance in this negotiation has betrayed a commitment to further devaluing the profession of writing ... They have closed the door on their labor force and opened the door to writing as an entirely freelance profession. No such deal could ever be contemplated by this membership."

Members of the guild tweeted details of the negotiations, including the AMPTP's counteroffers and outright rejections of many proposals, including setting a minimum number of writers to staff a show.

Why did the studios reject WGA proposals?

The studios approached the negotiations with "the long-term health and stability of the industry as our priority," AMPTP said in a statement shortly before the talks began, and it has been a shaky time in the industry. Entertainment conglomerates and streaming services are looking to bolstertheir bottom lines, ratcheting back a spending spree on new content that has hurt profits. Many have reported losses from streaming to Wall Street in recent months and made plans to lay off thousands of employees.

The AMPTP said it presented "a comprehensive package proposal to the Guild (April 30) which included generous increases in compensation for writers as well as improvements in streaming residuals. The AMPTP also indicated to the WGA that it is prepared to improve that offer, but was unwilling to do so because of the magnitude of other proposals still on the table that the Guild continues to insist upon."

What TV shows and movies will be affected by a writers strike?

Viewers will first notice the effects on daytime and late-night talk shows, from "The Kelly Clarkson Show" to "Jimmy Kimmel Live," "The Late Show with Stephen Colbert" and "The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon." Topical talk shows depend on writers and tape shows the day they air. So a strike immediately forces a shutdown.NBC's "Saturday Night Live" is also done for the remainder of the season, as three May episodes will be canceled. (The May 6 show was already being written for host Pete Davidson).Daytime soap operas also will run out of new episodes within a few weeks.

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Most broadcast shows, such as NBC's "Law & Order" and ABC's "Abbott Elementary," will finish their seasons; their finale episodes have already been written and filmed. But a prolonged strike could affect how soon they return in the fall. (A handful, including NBC's "Quantum Leap," already produced episodes for next season in preparation for a strike.) Streaming shows operate with far longer lead times, meaning the delays caused by any work stoppage won't be felt for months. But it's uncertain whether actors (also unionized in the Screen Actors Guild) would agree to film projects from already completed scripts during a strike.

Movies have an even longer lag time, so titles set to release in 2024 and 2025 are most likely to be affected by a strike, forcing delays.

The longer thestrike goes on, the more studios, streamers and networks will draw programming from non-WGA sources: Reality shows and foreign TV. During the 2007-08 strike, there was a boom in reality shows that lasted long after the writers returned to work.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Writers strike 2023 explained: Why and what it means for TV, film