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TV networks will have to deal with a glaring gap in their schedules as a number of late night shows will come off the air as a result of a writer's strike.
The Writers Guild of America (WGA) announced on Monday that it was due to go on strike after talks with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) broke down. It confirmed the news in a message sent directly to members, and picket lines are expected to start on Tuesday.
As a result, TV shows that rely on writers to create content on the day of airing, such as late-night talk shows, will be forced off the air immediately. Pre-recorded and scripted television shows shot before the writers' strike are still expected to air as normal. Similarly, news programming will stay on the air.
The following programs will be off the air on Tuesday evening: The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, The Late Show With Stephen Colbert, Late Night With Seth Meyers and The Daily Show. A rerun of a previous episode will likely take over the same slot. Newsweek has reached out to NBC, CBS, ABC and Comedy Central via email to confirm whether or not this is the case.
Saturday Night Live on NBC, Real Time with Bill Maher and Last Week Tonight with John Oliver are similar shows which are likely to be impacted, depending on how long this new WGA strike continues for.
Meyers addressed the talks between the WGA and the AMPTP during his online segment "Corrections" on Friday, April 28. He said he felt "very strongly that what the writers are asking for is not unreasonable."
"As a proud member of the guild, I'm very grateful that there's an organization for the best interests of writers," Meyers said. He went on to tell his audience that if they don't air, he will be "heartbroken."
He recalled the last time the WGA decided to strike back in 2007 and 2008. It lasted 100 days and forced dozens of late-night and scripted television shows off the air. The Milken Institute, cited by Los Angeles-based news site LAist, estimated that the strike 15 years ago cost the entertainment industry $2.1 billion, resulting in the loss of 37,700 jobs.
The WGA confirmed on Monday night that following six weeks of negotiating with Netflix, Amazon, Apple, Disney, Warner Brothers, NBC Universal, Sony and Paramount, all under the umbrella of AMPTP, the Board of Directors of WGA West and the Council of WGA East voted unanimously to call a strike. The strike came into effect from 12:01 a.m. on Tuesday, May 2.
"The companies' behavior has created a gig economy inside a union workforce, and their immovable stance in this negotiation has betrayed a commitment to further devaluing the profession of writing," the WGA wrote in a statement.
The Board of Directors of the @WGAwest and the Council of the @WGAeast, acting upon the authority granted to them by their memberships, have voted unanimously to call a strike, effective 12:01 AM, Tuesday, May 2.
— Writers Guild of America West (@WGAWest) May 2, 2023
"Though our negotiating Committee began this process intent on making a fair deal, the studios' response have been wholly insufficient given the existential crisis writers are facing," the WGA said.
The AMPTP released its own statement on Monday night, confirming that negotiations "concluded without an agreement."
"The AMPTP presented a comprehensive package proposal to the Guild last night which included generous increases in compensation for writers as well as improvements in streaming residuals. The AMPTP also indicated to the WGA that it is prepared to improve that offer, but was unwilling to do so because of the magnitude of other proposals still on the table that the Guild continues to insist upon."
The statement went into further details about the specifics on the table: "The primary sticking points are 'mandatory staffing,' and 'duration of employment'—Guild proposals that would require a company to staff a show with a certain number of writers for a specified period of time, whether needed or not."
The AMPTP concluded that it was "willing to engage in discussions with the WGA in an effort to break this logjam."
Pete Davidson and Jimmy Fallon had previously discussed an impending writer's strike on an episode of The Tonight Show. Fallon said, "please take care of the writers."
Davidson, who was due to host SNL on Saturday May 6, joked: "It sucks because it just feeds my weird story I have in my head of like, 'of course that would happen to me.'"
Newsweek reached out to both the WGA and the AMPTP via online communication for more information about their impasse.
About the writer
Jamie Burton is a Newsweek Senior TV and Film Reporter (Interviews) based in London, U.K. His focus is reporting on ... Read more