The Hollywood writers strike has ended – here’s what it means for Netflix, Disney Plus, and more

More pay, better viewership transparency, and new rules about AI tools

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Update:Finally, 148 days after the Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike, the long-running and bitter dispute is over.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter) on the evening of Tuesday, September 26, the WGA announced that its negotiating committee, WGA West Council, and WGA East Board voted unanimously to recommend the agreement to its members.

That means the strike is effectively over, with an end date and time set for 12:01am PT on Wednesday, September 27, which has now passed. However, union members will need to also agree to the deal for it to officially take effect. Members will be able to cast their votes in a ballot between October 2 and October 9. Given the unanimous vote between the WGA’s three main parties, though, we’d be surprised if union members vote against the proposals.

The WGA reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP. Today, our Negotiating Committee, WGAW Board, and WGAE Council all voted unanimously to recommend the agreement. The strike ends at 12:01 am. Check out our deal at https://t.co/c0ULMXhPL7. #WGAStrong pic.twitter.com/7z8kw9xI1pSeptember 27, 2023

Confirming the deal’s new and vastly improved terms in a statement atwgacontract.com, the WGA revealed that, as per the September 25 reports, the deal will run for three years. The new contract will end on May 1, 2026, meaning the WGA and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) will actually need to renegotiate the terms of the contract in two-and-a-half years time.

Based on asummary of the terms in the new deal, it appears the WGA have successfully negotiated a terrific contract, too. There are alotof concessions that the AMPTP and world’s biggest entertainment studios made in order to bring the five-month strike to an end, and you can read the majority of them via the link at the start of this paragraph. We’ve also outlined the most important points below, though, to show how the new deal affects the likes of Netflix, Disney Plus, Max, and more:

Original story follows.

After 146 days of bitter exchanges and tense negotiations, 2023’s historic writers strike might finally be coming to an end.

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Last Friday (September 22), we reported thatNetflix and Disney had reportedly stepped in to help bring an end to the Writers Guild of America’s (WGA) long-running dispute. Alongside the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA), which is also on strike, the the WGA had helped to shut down Hollywood, withnumerous movies and TV shows includingDeadpool 3andStranger Thingsamong the affected productions.

Now, it appears that one of those unions has won its battle against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) and theentertainmentindustry’s biggest studios. According toThe Hollywood Reporter(THR) andVariety, the WGA and AMPTP have “tentatively” agreed a new deal, with the former hailing the fresh terms as “exceptional” for its members.

In a statement posted on the WGA’s X (formerly Twitter) account, it confirmed that an agreement had been struck between the two parties. However, the deal still has some way to go before it’s official and WGA members can get back to work.

The WGA and AMPTP have reached a tentative agreement. This was made possible by the enduring solidarity of WGA members and extraordinary support of our union siblings who stood with us for over 146 days. More details coming after contract language is finalized. #WGAStrike pic.twitter.com/GBg2wZBwGBSeptember 25, 2023

As THR and Variety report, the WGA’s negotiating committee will be asked to vote on the terms set out by the new arrangement. If approved, the WGA West’s board and WGA East’s council will run a fine-tooth comb over the deal to see if it meets their demands.

If they too sign off on it – a decision is expected on Tuesday (September 26) – union members will have the chance to vote for or against the proposals. Should the deal pass with WGA members, the strike will end on an as-yet-determined date. Until then, writers have been asked to suspend all strike action, including picketing in front of studios.

The new deal could mark a major shift in the streaming landscape. For one, its reported three-year length allows the WGA to renegotiate the terms of the contract before the decade ends. That means the WGA will have a stronger hand if any significant industry changes, especially to the ever-changing streaming landscape, occur between now and then.

Throughout the near five-month strike the WGA has also demanded major changes to how its writers are compensated by the world’sbest streaming services. With a provisional deal now in place, it appears that union members might get a pay increase – and not just in the flat rates they receive from penning thebest Netflix showsandbest Prime Video moviesamong others.

It’s plausible that writers may also finally get compensation through residual checks – essentially, extra money in their pocket each time a movie or TV show is re-run and/or syndicated on streaming platforms likeNetflixandDisney Plus.

Another big sticking point during the protracted talks was the potential threat posed to writers by artificial intelligence (AI). The WGA argued thatPrime Video,Max, and other streaming giants could replace those who pen the scripts for their movies and TV shows with AI tools likeChatGPT. Unsurprisingly, using such technology could put WGA members out of work, although right now it’s unclear how effective AI-powered language models would be at writing good scripts. It remains to be seen whether Netflix, Disney, Warner Bros. Discovery, and other leading studios backed down over this particular issue, and, if they did, to what degree.

Then there are the growing calls for greater transparency over viewing figures in the streaming sector. To its credit, Netflix has been posting weekly updates about its best-performing movies and TV shows for over a year via itsNetflix Top 10 website. Admittedly, it doesn’t tell the whole story about how successful certain projects have been – for one, Netflix doesn’t provide a breakdown on how many audience members watched a TV show from start to finish. In an era where others are extremely reluctant to reveal official viewership data, though, Netflix should be applauded for being more open than its streaming rivals.

We did it. We have a tentative deal.Over the coming days, we’ll discuss and vote on it, together, as a democratic union. But today, I want to thank every single WGA member, and every fellow worker who stood with us in solidarity. You made this possible. Thank you. #WGAStrong pic.twitter.com/KfzVKoPMPzSeptember 25, 2023

Again, the AMPTP, and the studios it represents, have been hesitant to bow to this demand. But – and it’s a big but – if they’ve also backtracked on this issue, we could see a massive shift in how streaming data is presented.

For example, Prime Video andApple TV Plushave never publicly disclosed how well any of their original productions have performed. The best data we’ve received fromAmazon’s flagship streamer is along the lines ofThe Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Powerbecoming the most-watched Prime Video original TV show of all time. Meanwhile,Applehas never revealed viewing figures for thebest Apple TV Plus showsor movies, such asFoundationor the 2022 Best Picture Oscar winnerCODA.

If the new deal includes anything about greater viewership transparency in the industry, it’ll give writers – not just studios – a better understanding of how well their shows or films have performed. Even better, if that data has to be made public, viewers will also see which productions did or didn’t do so well, and why streamers likeHuluandParamount Plushave unceremoniously canceled them.

We’ll learn more aboutsomeof the most important points of the deal in the coming days, which should shine a light on how ground-breaking this deal could be. Stick with TechRadar for more updates when we have them – and here’s hoping the SAG-AFTRA strike is now remedied as quickly as possible, so that we can get back to what we all enjoy most: watching a whole hold of fantasticnew moviesand TV shows.

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As TechRadar’s senior entertainment reporter, Tom covers all of the latest movies, TV shows, and streaming service news that you need to know about. You’ll regularly find him writing about the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Star Wars, Netflix, Prime Video, Disney Plus, and many other topics of interest.

An NCTJ-accredited journalist, Tom also writes reviews, analytical articles, opinion pieces, and interview-led features on the biggest franchises, actors, directors and other industry leaders. You may see his quotes pop up in the odd official Marvel Studios video, too, such as thisMoon Knight TV spot.

Away from work, Tom can be found checking out the latest video games, immersing himself in his favorite sporting pastime of football, reading the many unread books on his shelf, staying fit at the gym, and petting every dog he comes across.

Got a scoop, interesting story, or an intriguing angle on the latest news in entertainment? Feel free to drop him a line.

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