What's next? And what this means for the Actors' strike?

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Good morning,

We don’t want to bury the lede: Baby O has arrived!

Congratulations to Mosheh and Alex on their beautiful baby girl, Olivia Grey Oinounou.

Mommy and baby (and daddy) are home and doing great!

And like a true journalist-in-the-making, Olivia arrived right on deadline (Alex went into labor on her due date).

Best of luck to all three,

Jill & Leila

🗞 TOP STORY: WE’VE GOT A DEAL!

Hollywood writers and studios have reached a tentative deal on a new contract, essentially ending the writers’ 146-day strike. The agreement still needs to be approved by the union’s board and members, but that could happen as soon as this week.

There were expectations that a deal would be reached because the big players—- like Disney’s Bob Iger and Netflix’s Ted Sarandos— directly took part in the most recent round of talks.

WHAT’S IN THE AGREEMENT?

According to reports, the WGA was able to get concessions from the studios on most of their demands. Here’s what is reportedly in the deal:

Writers will receive bonuses for popular shows on streaming services.
Guarantees that AI won’t impact writers' credits and compensation.
Studios agreed to staff a certain number of writers per TV show, a figure that will increase with the number of episodes in a season.

The WGA negotiating committee took a victory lap saying, “We can say, with great pride, that this deal is exceptional — with meaningful gains and protections for writers in every sector of the membership.”

Notably, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which bargains on behalf of studios, gave a one-line comment on the deal: “The W.G.A. and A.M.P.T.P. have reached a tentative agreement.”

NEXT STEPS
As soon as today, the leadership boards of the WGA are expected to vote on whether to approve the contract. If the leadership approves, then members will vote to ratify the contract.

While the leaders of the guild have called for picketing to stop, writers won’t return to work until the contract is formalized and ratified.

SO WHEN WILL HOLLYWOOD GET BACK TO WORK?

Theoretically, writers could get back to work as soon as the deal is approved. BUT— and there’s a big but—- SAG-AFTRA, the union representing 160,00 actors, is still on strike.

The tentative WGA deal puts pressure on SAG-AFTRA to reach an agreement along the same lines.
Analysts say the studio’s resolution with WGA will likely pave the way for a deal with SAG-AFTRA within the next few weeks.
WHAT TO EXPECT AS FAR AS PROGRAMMING: Late-night and daytime talk shows like Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, and Drew Barrymore are likely to resume work as soon as possible.

HOW MUCH HAS THE STRIKE COST?

The WGA strikes followed by the SAG-AFTRA have had a huge impact on the entertainment industry. Nearly 100,000 behind-the-scene workers, like directors, camera operators, costume designers, etc., have also been out of work due to the stand-still in Hollywood.

California’s economy lost billions from the shutdown.
Hollywood workers have taken more than $45 million in hardship withdrawals from the Motion Picture Industry Pension Plan.
Warner Bros.Discovery said the dual strikes would reduce its earnings for the year by $300-$500 million.
Studios have lost $1.6 billion in global ticket sales for movie releases that were pushed to 2024.

⏳ SPEED READ

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🗓 ON THIS DAY: SEPTEMBER 26

1957: West Side Story, composed by Leonard Bernstein, opens at the Winter Garden Theatre on Broadway.
1960: For the first time in U.S. history, a debate between major party presidential candidates is broadcast on live television. Democrat John F. Kennedy, a senator of Massachusetts, and Richard M. Nixon, the vice president of the United States, met in a Chicago studio to discuss U.S. domestic matters.
1969: The Beatles released Abbey Road, their last-recorded album.
1969: The Brady Bunch premiered on ABC.
- 🧠 The Mo You Know: The LA house that served as the exterior of the Brady home just sold for $3.2 million dollars. That’s 9% less than the seller, HGTV, paid for the home in 2018. The buyer says she plans to use it “for fundraising and charitable events,” and won’t change a thing about it, even though none of the appliances actually work.