I’ve been keeping my eyes on the WGA (Writers Guild of America) strike for personal reasons explained below. Now it seems that many actors nominated for the Golden Globe Award will refuse to cross the picket lines for the televised ceremony on January 13, in support of striking writers. Unless, of course, they can strike some kind of deal beforehand. This is huge. Can you imagine television and film with no Golden Globe ceremony? And think of all the money that will be lost–or never earned. But that’s exactly what the striking writers had in mind, no doubt. Hit ‘em where it hurts–the wallet. No pain, no gain.
NBC plans to go ahead and air the ceremony and hope that enough actors will want the prestigious award badly enough to cross the picket lines, but it doesn’t look too cozy for the network at this point. Hollywood writers have been on strike since early November seeking better payment terms for shows that air on the internet, and the strike’s tentacles are reaching far and wide.
For some of us it’s not just having to put up with reruns of reruns and endless reality shows. (I happen to like some of the reality shows but enough is enough. Even I’m getting fed up with them.) But on top of all that, two of my novels–PG County and Can’t Get Enough–were optioned by a Hollywood production team and were being shopped around to actors and directors. Weeks before the strike, all activity ground to a halt as the strike seemed imminent.
Yeah, it’s frustrating. Painful, even. Still I support the writers. I understand where they’re coming from. All too often, we’re courted and treated like royalty when they need our creative talent and then given shaft when the money is passed out. And it’s not like the writers are asking for the moon. All they want is to ensure a cut of the profits when their work appears on the internet. So I’ll dig in and hope for a better day on this one. Hopefully soon.
A big question ahead is what does this mean for the Oscars, slated to air on February 24?
Photo credit: ©iStockphoto.com/Graffizone
2 comments ↓
I hope they work this out soon. I understand the writers viewpoint but a lot of people besides them are getting hurt with this.
Good luck on getting your book made into a movie someday.
Thanks, Yvonne. I hope they work it out soon, too.
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