Hollywood writers to evaluate counterproposal from studios

[August 12, 2023]  (Reuters) - The union representing striking Hollywood writers said on Friday it had received a counterproposal from the studios that it would consider, an apparent sign of progress in the more than 100-day-old strike.

SAG-AFTRA actors and Writers Guild of America (WGA) writers walk the picket line during their ongoing strike outside Sunset Bronson studios and Netflix offices in Los Angeles, California, U.S., August 11, 2023. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) said it would respond next week "after deliberation" on the offer from the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which negotiates on behalf of companies including Walt Disney and Netflix.

Both sides met on Aug. 4 to discuss resuming talks and the issues each intended to bring to the bargaining table, but the WGA afterwards criticized the studios in a sign the talks were strained.

The strike by Hollywood writers began on May 2 after talks between the WGA and the major studios reached an impasse over compensation, minimum staffing of writers' rooms and residual payments in the streaming era, among other issues.

Actors represented by the Screen Actors Guild went on strike on July 14 also over pay and artificial intelligence, effectively halting production of scripted television shows and films and affecting businesses throughout the entertainment world's orbit. It is the first time both unions have gone on strike since 1960.

(Reporting by Chandni Shah in Bengaluru; Editing by William Mallard)

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