Despite the disappearance of a major roadblock to a deal, the threat of a writers strike remains strong, Variety reports.
A day after studios and nets removed their polarizing proposal to revamp residuals, there were no signs of movement as the daunting task of crafting a deal acceptable to the WGA and Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers remained.
Reps for the WGA and AMPTP huddled in separate meetings Wednesday and did not hold any face-to-face negotiations. With no new date set yet for the resumption of formal bargaining and the WGA’s strike authorization vote concluding late today, talks won’t probably start again until Friday at the earliest.
Hollywood has cheered the AMPTP’s move to remove the residuals proposal as the first positive news from what had been three months of rancorous and unproductive talks. With the AMPTP having made the move, the spotlight’s shifted to the WGA to respond.
But it took months to achieve that progress, so labor watchers are skeptical that there’s enough momentum to reach agreement by the time the WGA’s contract expires on Oct. 31.
Two key questions have emerged among observers: Will the WGA agree to a contract extension in exchange for a multiyear study of compensation, even though it spurned the idea in July? And can the AMPTP sweeten an extension deal enough to get the guild leaders aboard?
