4 ms·

I mean.. not indefinitely, but in a war of attrition, executives are much better positioned to weather the drought than writers. Apart from everything else, the

I mean.. not indefinitely, but in a war of attrition, executives are much better positioned to weather the drought than writers. Apart from everything else, there is just so much content out there, re-running old stuff is a valid tactic until other steps are necessary. I absolutely buy willingness to hold out. I have no way of telling the public sentiment on the issue though, which could be a factor.

kozikow 3y ago
Plots of many movies in recent years have been so crap, that honestly chatgpt can do a better job already.
JumpCrisscross 3y ago
> in a war of attrition, executives are much better positioned to weather the drought than writers Not necessarily. If the writers had pulled this in 2021, they'd have won. Everyone wanted to buy more content. That not only made the opportunity cost of not producing larger, it introduced the credible threat of writers picking off the studios one by one or even decamping to a new entrant.
aidenn0 3y ago
For an idea of what things can be like for strikes in the entertainment industry, look at the 1942-1944 musicians' strike[1]. Yes that's a multi-year strike, not a series of strikes. 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1942%E2%80%931944_musicians%27_strike https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1942%E2%80%931944_musicians%27...
- sidewndr46 3y ago
  that was during WWII, which probably represented the greatest reduction in workers and citizens rights the United States ever saw.
danaris 3y ago
> executives are much better positioned to weather the drought than writers. Why? Due to the way Hollywood treats writers, they're already used to having periods of 6-10 months or so without any writing work. > there is just so much content out there, re-running old stuff is a valid tactic until other steps are necessary. But it doesn't raise the stock price. At best, it might keep it afloat for a while. Unlike the writers, the studio execs are expected to show growth on a regular basis. And bear in mind that the studios have already been using "Your favorite shows won't have new episodes! Doesn't that make you want to force the writers to accept our utterly one-sided contract??" as a cudgel toward fans—so they think that "watching old content instead of demanding the new right away" is, at least to some extent, not in their best interests.
- A4ET8a8uTh0 3y ago
  << Why? Due to the way Hollywood treats writers, they're already used to having periods of 6-10 months or so without any writing work. My apologies. I assumed it was clear from my post. Executives have more money to burn through. They also do not automatically lose money, when writer don't work ( streaming services bring in steady flow as long as you have a decent library ). Who knows? Maybe this will force streaming services to share the digital library in an effort to outmaneuver writers ( one giant library of oldies to draw from ). Seems unlikely, but it all depends on how hell bent executives really are. Now compare that situation to that of writers. It does not look as promising. << Unlike the writers, the studio execs are expected to show growth on a regular basis. Eh. Execs have to mollify investors and investors are not unlikely to support 'heavy negotiation tactics'. As such, I am not sure if they have to worry about 2023. FWIW, I may very well be wrong. I am a sucker for a David vs Goliath story, but the deck is heavily stacked against writers.

kozikow 3y ago

Plots of many movies in recent years have been so crap, that honestly chatgpt can do a better job already.

JumpCrisscross 3y ago

> in a war of attrition, executives are much better positioned to weather the drought than writers Not necessarily. If the writers had pulled this in 2021, they'd have won. Everyone wanted to buy more content. That not only made the opportunity cost of not producing larger, it introduced the credible threat of writers picking off the studios one by one or even decamping to a new entrant.

aidenn0 3y ago

For an idea of what things can be like for strikes in the entertainment industry, look at the 1942-1944 musicians' strike[1]. Yes that's a multi-year strike, not a series of strikes. 1: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1942%E2%80%931944_musicians%27_strike https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1942%E2%80%931944_musicians%27...

sidewndr46 3y ago
that was during WWII, which probably represented the greatest reduction in workers and citizens rights the United States ever saw.

danaris 3y ago

> executives are much better positioned to weather the drought than writers. Why? Due to the way Hollywood treats writers, they're already used to having periods of 6-10 months or so without any writing work. > there is just so much content out there, re-running old stuff is a valid tactic until other steps are necessary. But it doesn't raise the stock price. At best, it might keep it afloat for a while. Unlike the writers, the studio execs are expected to show growth on a regular basis. And bear in mind that the studios have already been using "Your favorite shows won't have new episodes! Doesn't that make you want to force the writers to accept our utterly one-sided contract??" as a cudgel toward fans—so they think that "watching old content instead of demanding the new right away" is, at least to some extent, not in their best interests.

A4ET8a8uTh0 3y ago
<< Why? Due to the way Hollywood treats writers, they're already used to having periods of 6-10 months or so without any writing work. My apologies. I assumed it was clear from my post. Executives have more money to burn through. They also do not automatically lose money, when writer don't work ( streaming services bring in steady flow as long as you have a decent library ). Who knows? Maybe this will force streaming services to share the digital library in an effort to outmaneuver writers ( one giant library of oldies to draw from ). Seems unlikely, but it all depends on how hell bent executives really are. Now compare that situation to that of writers. It does not look as promising. << Unlike the writers, the studio execs are expected to show growth on a regular basis. Eh. Execs have to mollify investors and investors are not unlikely to support 'heavy negotiation tactics'. As such, I am not sure if they have to worry about 2023. FWIW, I may very well be wrong. I am a sucker for a David vs Goliath story, but the deck is heavily stacked against writers.