Dispatches From WGA Picket Lines: Tony Kushner Slams Studios’ Greed At Peacock NewFront Presentation

There was come old-school writer cred on the picket line outside the Fox lot in Century City today. David E. Kelley, he of the 11 Emmys and 30 nominations, is a veteran of multiple WGA strikes going back to 1988. Introducing himself as “David E. Kelley, old writer,” the Love & Death creator — whose many credits also include Big Little Lies, Big Sky, The Lincoln Lawyer, The Undoing, The Practice, Ally McBeal, and Picket Fences — told Deadline why he’s striking this time.

Picketers gathered outside Warner Bros. in Burbank today found themselves buoyed by a unique presence: Flavor Flav. The hip-hop icon-turned-reality star showed up to cheers from the assembled WGA supporters.

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.

It was a tale of two coasts today, as WGA picketers and their allies targeted Disney’s upfront presentation in New York and also the company’s Burbank lot in Los Angeles. And the two scenes were very different.

scathing message on Facebook, “Star Trek: The Next Generation” star Wil Wheaton blasted “Jeopardy!” host Ken Jennings for crossing the picket line during the Writer’s Guild of America strike, giving him a stark warning.“This is a VERY small town, Ken Jennings, and we will all remember this,” Wheaton typed on the social media platform. “Your privilege may protect you right now, but we will *never* forget.”He also included the hashtag “#WGAStrong” in the post.The actor continued his thoughts in the comments section of the post, calling out those who were speaking negatively about unions.“Hey y’all, if you’re here to s–t on unions, you can f–k right off.

The NBCUniversal Upfront presentation was the center of Day 14 of the writers strike on the east coast.

Striking writers in New York City said they disrupted filming of FBI: Most Wanted for a second straight day by heading off a planned location shoot at a public park in Brooklyn on Friday morning and later by causing slowdowns of work on the Dick Wolf-EP’d crime drama starring Dylan McDermott and Alexa Davalos at a nearby soundstage. 

Sad news for the Broadway community – the 2023 Tony Awards will not be able to take place as planned on June 11.

Rep. Katie Porter joined writers on the picket line at the Culver Studios in Los Angeles on Friday in solidarity with the ongoing WGA strike.

the site requires the name of the person reporting, their email address and provides a subject line and message box to describe the violation.The guild’s Strike Rule #9 require that members report of any strikebreaking activity such as scab writing or other ways of crossing the picket line.“To the extent possible, you should be specific about the nature of the violation, including the date and place of the violation, the name of the struck company involved, and the name of the project, if any,” the rule states.Disciplinary action is described under Article X of the guild’s constitution as including but not limited to “expulsion or suspension from Guild membership, imposition of monetary fines, or censure.” These methods of discipline are enforceable through the court system. Since the strike began 11 days ago, writers and showrunners have established picket lines at various awards shows, premiere events and by refusing to do any press to promote their upcoming releases.Wednesday the WGA Negotiating Committee, the WGAW Board, WGAE Council and others pledged funds to give to industry workers in need. More than $1.7 million in total has been pledged to the Entertainment Community Fund to aid writers in the industry.

The Writers Guild of America has established a site on its Strike Hub where members can and must report strike breakers. Those who fail to report suspected “scabs” can face discipline themselves. After the last writers’ strike – a 100-day walkout in 2007-08 – a dozen members were brought up on trial for strike breaking, three of whom were found guilty. The current strike is now in its eleventh day.

Mandy Patinkin is feeling the rage.

After yesterday’s Imagine Dragons party outside Netflix, it was Paramount’s turn to pop.

Cynthia Littleton Business Editor Let the gig economy debate begin. One of the most contentious issues in the writers strike that erupted May 2 is the assertion by the Writers Guild of America that screenwriting is in danger of becoming part of the “gig economy.” The WGA’s proposed solutions — mandatory staffing minimums and guaranteed weeks of employment — are equally dividing labor and management. Now that contract talks between the WGA and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have cratered, complex issues are being chewed over by writers who are fired up, walking in circles (literally) and wound up about the long-term employment picture for Hollywood scribes.

A trio of SNL greats joined the WGA picket line Tuesday at Silvercup Studios in Queens.

Actors’ Equity Association, the union representing theater actors and stage managers, is inviting its members and allies to join the WGA picket line outside HBO and Amazon offices tomorrow.

Angelique Jackson SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher had a sobering message for Hollywood’s major studios as she joined a WGA picket line outside Paramount Pictures on Monday afternoon. “They feel like this strike is a strike for everybody in the industry,” Drescher said of SAG-AFTRA members and the WGA’s labor action. Drescher, who was elected SAG-AFTRA president in September 2021, marched arm in arm with Writers Guild of America West president Meredith Stiehm in a show of solidarity, joining a coalition of a few hundred members from each guild who were picketing outside Paramount starting at 9 a.m. PT as week two of the WGA strike began.

SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher joined members of her guild marching in solidarity with Writers Guild of America members Monday on the picket lines in front of the entrance to Paramount Pictures’ backlot.Amid this display of solidarity, Drescher is preparing with SAG-AFTRA to begin talks on their own new contract, and she is signaling that actors need major change in Hollywood just as much as writers.“We can’t keep building on a contract that was developed in the 1980s,” Drescher told TheWrap. “I’m hoping that we go in with a new perspective, a different portal to enter the conversation just as we did with other talks that we were successful in resolving.

On the seventh day of the Writers Guild of America’s strike against Hollywood studios, guild leaders from both the WGA and SAG-AFTRA, including actors union president Fran Drescher, hit the picket lines at Paramount Pictures in Los Angeles.

Latino WGA members and their allies descended upon Universal Studios en masse Monday beginning at 5 a.m. to picket on the sixth day of the Hollywood writers strike.