‘Rings of Power’ to Finish Filming Season 2 Amid Writers Strike Without Showrunners on Set

Hollywood talent agencies are getting into a cost-cutting mode amid a second industry work stoppage in three years. Many have implemented extra scrutiny/cuts in travel and expenses and some are also contemplating/planning temporary salary reductions.

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.

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.

The yearly ATX Television Festival will adjust its schedule to accommodate conversations about the ongoing writers strike, some of which will replace previously announced panels. The Austin-based event runs from June 1 – 4.

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.

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.

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.

In May 2020, two months into the production shutdown caused by the global pandemic, NBC acquired Canadian medical drama Transplant, which landed on the network’s Covid-impacted fall schedule. In December of that year, NBC picked up Season 2 of the show.

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.

HBO, Warner Bros. TV, NBCUniversal and other major struck studios will be suspending some first-look and overall deals amid the ongoing writers strike. Sources close to the situation tell Variety that Amazon will be sending letters out Monday notifying those affected. The studio does have some carveouts for creatives who are rendering producing services but non-writing. HBO is said to be making calls to alert the individuals, but formal letters have not been sent yet. On May 2, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) called for a strike after failing to ink a new deal with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). Picketing quickly ensued in New York City, Los Angeles and Atlanta and several productions were shut down due to the strike.

 is the latest television series to pause production amid the ongoing writers' strike in Hollywood.On Saturday, the Duffer Brothers, the duo behind the series and showrunners of the Netflix hit, took to Twitter to announce that production on the show's fifth and final season would have to come to a halt due to the strike.«Duffers here. Writing does not stop when filming begins. While we’re excited to start production with our amazing cast and crew, it is not possible during this strike,» Matt and Ross Duffer tweeted.

The Monday, May 8 Los Angeles premiere of documentary Still: A Michael J. Fox Movie has been postponed because of the main subject’s refusal to cross a Writer’s Guild picket line. The film was set to bow at Universal Studios

The MTV Movie & TV Awards will no longer be held live amid the ongoing writers’ strike, instead pivoting to a pre-taped ceremony that will air Sunday. The network announced the news Friday as the writers’ strike, which officially began Tuesday, continues in Los Angeles and New York City, after a breakdown in talks with studios and streaming services.

MTV Movie & TV Awards will no longer be held live amid the ongoing writers' strike, instead pivoting to a pretaped ceremony that will air Sunday. The network announced the news Friday as the writers' strike, which officially began Tuesday, continues in Los Angeles and New York City, after a breakdown in talks with studios and streaming services.“As we carefully navigate how best to deliver the fan first awards’ show we envisioned that our team has worked so hard to create, we’re pivoting away from a live event that still enables us to produce a memorable night full of exclusive sneak peaks, irreverent categories our audience has come to expect, and countless moments that will both surprise and delight as we honor the best of film and TV over the past year," Bruce Gillmer, president of music, music talent, programming and events at Paramount Global, and executive producer of the MTV Movie & TV Awards, said in a new statement.Drew Barrymore, who was set to host the awards, pulled out of the event on Thursday, announcing that she was standing in solidarity with the striking writers.«I have listened to the writers, and in order to truly respect them, I will pivot from hosting the MTV Movie & TV Awards live in solidarity with the strike,» Barrymore said in a statement to ET.

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”.