CEO Pay High In 2022 Amid Industry Shakeup, Looming Writers Strike

Pat Saperstein Deputy Editor In the new Apple TV+ comedy noir series “High Desert,” Patricia Arquette and Matt Dillon play an off-and-on again couple so naturally that it seems like they must have starred together in some iconic 1990s indie movie. Surprisingly, they haven’t, but the off-kilter, sun-baked menace of films like Arquette starrers “True Romance” and “Lost Highway” permeates the new series, which is peopled with what Arquette calls “wild and weird creatures” in an environment that alternates between arid beauty and strip mall desolation. In “High Desert,” Arquette’s methadone-dependent, perennial wild child Peggy Newman could not be more different than her buttoned-up “Severance” character Harmony Cobel, whether she’s piloting a dune buggy around the desert, swinging from a chandelier in a Pioneertown Old West show or getting mixed up with another half-baked scam. Peggy, who recently lost her mother, needs to raise money to stay in their house. She hatches a plan to become a private investigator, getting mixed up in cases involving art forgeries and a missing guru’s wife and more. “High Desert” premiered on May 17, with new episodes rolling out weekly.

With just the CW left tomorrow, the near-talent-free upfronts are winding down, and shows are still being shuttered in New York City, while on the picket lines in LA there was Mariachism, tacos, tunes and some Mandalorians to galvanize the troops.

amid the ongoing, contentious Hollywood writers’ strike.The 49-year-old and his showrunners — Brian Boyle, Matt Weitzman, Rich Appel and Alec Sulkin — walked out in support of the ongoing Writers Guild of America work stoppage, Deadline recently reported. MacFarlane — who has voiced “Family Guy” characters including Peter, Brian and Stewie Griffin, and “American Dad!” lead Stan Smith — reportedly has no plans to return until an agreement between the WGA and his studio, 20th Television, is reached.“Family Guy” wrapped up its 21st season on Fox on May 7; however, MacFarlane’s popular “American Dad!” is two months into its 20th season, which premiered Mar. 27 on TBS.The latter has three months of scripts and voiceovers already in the can, according to Deadline, and the studio would need to devise a plan for moving forward with the rest of the season.Neither MacFarlane nor his Fuzzy Door Productions received a suspension letter from NBCUniversal, the publication claimed.The Emmy Award winner participated in the 2007to 2008 writers’ strike that lasted 100 days, so rejoining the movement 15 years later might not come as much of a shock.The Post has reached out to MacFarlane’s representatives for comment.On May.

Meanwhile I hear folks at Late Night with Seth Meyers and The Late Show With Stephen Colbert will continue to be paid.Solidarity with WGA! https://t.co/RQwREipx2HAn unnamed source reportedly confirmed the show’s decision to the Huffington Post Tuesday. NBC didn’t immediately respond to TheWrap’s request for comment. The decision to halt payment for the show’s staff is essentially how NBC and Fallon signaled things might go back at the beginning of the strike. Following a public pressure campaign led in part by Kobos, NBC agreed to pay the staff for two weeks, and Fallon said he himself would pay for a third week. “I have a very good update! We ended up having our production meeting this [morning] too and @jimmyfallon was there,” Kobos tweeted on May 3.

“9-1-1” — as the ongoing WGA strike impacts productions industrywide.Reruns of “Abbott Elementary” airing back-to-back at 9 p.m. ET/PT Wednesdays are the only scripted show on the fall schedule.A source with knowledge of the decision making told TheWrap the goal was to present a strike-proof fall schedule ahead of the Disney/ABC upfronts presentation Tuesday.

Tiffany Red Tiffany Red is a Grammy-winning songwriter and songwriter advocate who has written hits for Jennifer Hudson, Fantasia, Jason Derulo and Zendaya, among others. She is founder and executive director of the 100 Percenters, a 501 c3 organization with the stated goal of advocating “for all music creatives with a focus on BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and marginalized creatives.” Variety welcomes responsible commentary — email [email protected] to submit. Dear Music Publishers, I am writing this letter as a call to action for all major and independent music publishers to support the #paysongwriters movement. As the founder and executive director of the 100 Percenters, a music non-profit, and a songwriter myself for over 15 years, I have witnessed and experienced firsthand songwriters’ insurmountable struggles in their quest for a livable wage from publishing royalties. Unfortunately, the plight has increasingly led to one percent of the industry’s elite hogging most of the rewards. But what about everyone else? As I watch the Writers Guild of America and 11,500 of their members on strike for fair pay for screenwriters, I admire those with the courage to fight for a better tomorrow for their industry. And I wonder where that spirit is for songwriter’s compensation in the music industry. 

EXCLUSIVE: Cocaine Bear filmmaker Elizabeth Banks has urged industry professionals to “hold the line” and support striking writers, particularly around issues such as the use of AI as her thriller Dreamquil, which explores the dangers of artificial intelligence, launches at the Canes Market.

This year’s Peabody Awards ceremony has been canceled “due to the ongoing uncertainty and meaningful challenges that exist industrywide,” according to a statement from the Peabody Awards organization. The June 11 awards would have been the organization’s first in-person ceremony since 2019, as well as the first time ever in its history that the Awards would take place in Los Angeles.

Jennifer Maas TV Business Writer Warner Bros. Discovery has asked talent not to appear in-person at their Wednesday upfronts presentation, so as not to put those individuals in a position where they need to cross the Writers Guild of America’s picket line amid the ongoing writers strike, Variety has learned. A source close to the situation says this choice was made by WBD out of respect for both the talent and the writers on strike. However, talent will be represented in other ways throughout the show, and the event will cover all parts of the WBD business operations. The original pre-strike plan had been for a robust lineup, including big WBD stars like Magnolia Network’s Chip and Joanna Gaines, but has been trimmed down since the strike went into effect May 2, when the WGA and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers failed to ink a new contract.

Fox unveiled its 2023/24 programming slate this morning and the writers strike was front and center.

2023 Tony Awards to air as scheduled on June 11 amid the ongoing writers strike. The Hollywood Reporter reported Friday that the telecast of theater’s biggest night will not air on CBS and stream on Paramount+ as originally planned.

Nearly two weeks into the national writers' strike spearheaded by the Writers Guild of America (WGA), little progress has been made between both sides. The WGA has a litany of requests for the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).

Matt Donnelly Senior Film Writer Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos will no longer attend a gala meant to honor him next week in New York. The decision comes as labor issues grab headlines across Hollywood. Sarandos was set to accept the Business Visionary Award at the annual PEN American Spring Literary Gala, alongside fellow honoree Lorne Michaels and a host of literati including Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, Susan Choi, Jennifer Egan, Min Jin Lee, Jay McInerney and Gay Talese. He’s skipping the event, to be held under the blue whale at the American Museum of Natural History, as many industry celebrations weigh how to address the writers strike. “Given the potential to disrupt this wonderful evening, I thought it was best to pull out so as not to distract from the important work that PEN America does for writers and journalists, as well as the celebration of my friend and personal hero Lorne Michaels. I hope the evening is a great success,” Sarandos told Variety in a statement.

Tony Gilroy is standing with the writers amid their strike.

unable to reach a deal in contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Picketing began last week in New York City and Los Angeles.The strike involves a long list of concerns that the writers want Hollywood studios to address, from the low pay involved in writing streaming series to reining in “mini-rooms” used to skirt contractual pay practices to addressing the use of artificial intelligence.Murdoch’s comments come ahead of Fox’s Upfront presentation to advertisers on May 15.“I think the timing of the strike, obviously, with the upfronts next week, creates some hesitancy,” he added.

Kristin Dolan, who took over earlier this year as CEO of AMC Networks, said the company is “very well positioned” to manage through the WGA strike.

Snoop Dogg has criticised the “fucked up” payment models of streaming services and shared his support for striking writers.The WGA (Writer’s Guild of America) strike took effect last Tuesday (May 2) after weeks of failed negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).Following the confirmation of the strike – Hollywood’s first in 15 years – WGA uploaded a document outlining the differences between proposals made by the writers’ union and offers from the AMPTP that have led to the strike.Snoop has now become the latest in a long line of artists to share their support for striking workers. During a panel discussion on Wednesday (May 3), the artist said he didn’t understand how writers and musicians “can’t get paid” from “fucked up” streaming service payment models.He added (via Variety) that musicians “need to figure it out the same way the writers are figuring it out,” adding: “The writers are striking because [of] streaming ― they can’t get paid.

The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power season two will finish filming amid the ongoing writers’ strike, despite executive producers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay not being present on set.READ MORE: ‘The Lord Of The Rings: The Rings Of Power’ review: epic fantasy franchise returns to rule them allThe Amazon Prime Video series reportedly has 19 days of filming remaining, but as per the rules laid out by the Writers Guild of America (WGA), Payne, McKay and other writer-producers are prohibited from taking part in any writing-based activities during the strike. This includes making decisions on set.In their place, non-writing producers, such as Lindsey Weber, directors Charlotte Brändström, Sanaa Hamri and Louise Hooper, and crew members will be overseeing the production for the UK-based shoot.As reported by Variety, a source close to the production has claimed that there have been multiple units filming on Rings Of Power during the strike, including night shoots.Payne and McKay also planned for the strike in advance with fellow producers, directors and crew members, so that their absence would not impact production.Last month, it was reported that a fire broke out on the set of the show.

An array of shows have had to come to a standstill amid the Hollywood writers’ strike, but not “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power”.

Adam B. Vary Senior Entertainment Writer “The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power” is the latest marquee TV series to move forward with production amid the ongoing WGA strike, but the Amazon Prime Video show will be doing so without the services of executive producers J.D. Payne and Patrick McKay. The sweeping fantasy series has 19 days of filming remaining, sources confirm to Variety, but per WGA strike rules, Payne, McKay and any other writer-producers are barred from participating in any writing-based duties during production while the strike continues — including making creative decisions on set. Instead, the show’s non-writing executive producers (like Lindsey Weber), directors (Charlotte Brändström, Sanaa Hamri and Louise Hooper) and crew are overseeing production on the U.K.-based shoot.