After 150 days of striking, the Writers Guild of America, WGA, settled on deals between studios. They reached their final agreement Sept. 25.
Remaining on strike were members of SAG-AFTRA, the Screen Actors Guild, and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists.
SAG-AFTRA was founded March 30, 2012. This labor union was formed to protect the rights of the actors, writers, producers and other performers from unjust working conditions and currently holds 116,741 members. This union believes in “standard working conditions, compensation and benefits” comparable to their work.
Among this group, many writers and actors have begun to feel as though their rights protected by the union have been violated by big production corporations such as Disney.
The CEO of Disney, Bob Iger, who makes approximately $27 million a year, claimed in a Variety interview in July that the strikes were “very disturbing.” He then said that those corporations are still attempting to make a comeback from the hit they took during COVID-19.
The effects of COVID-19 are genuine in small businesses due to rising unemployment, and yes, in the movie industry. Many people don’t go to the movie theater much anymore since they know the movies will be on their favorite streaming platforms in no time.
But that’s just the point: Disney has significantly profited from the increased use of streaming platforms. With its launch in late 2019, many people turned to the comfort of their favorite childhood movies when they had to be isolated. COVID hurt Disney’s park revenue, as they had to close, costing $2.6 billion. But that’s not counting movie revenue.
Iger has since made a turn from his previous statements. In a Rueters interview, he claimed to want to find a solution for the strikes (that cost him the least amount of money) and that he has a “deep respect” for all of the creative professionals who support his company.
It’s enormous corporations like Disney that are the reason for writers’ strikes. Writers were making barely any revenue from their work, especially in successful shows.
Movies, TV shows and talk shows can only exist because of the writers who create them. They make the magic behind every Disney movie and make audiences laugh during talk shows and comedy specials. They are the movie industry. All they are asking for is to be paid fairly, given royalties, to be treated well when working, and to be given breaks.
Being a writer of good, quality media is so hard in a time when everyone is impossibly critical, and they should be compensated fairly for their work.
