‘The Talk’ Goes Dark Due To Writers Strike

Kourtney Kardashian is switching up her look again!

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.

The last time a writers strike impacted the LA Screenings in 2008, the world was in recession and studios pared back their spend on glitzy marketing and all-singing, all-dancing parties and soirees. We are not quite at that stage, but, in 2023, these conditions have an air of familiarity.

Flavor Flav is showing his support for members of the Writers Guild of America!

Michael Schneider Variety Editor at Large As TV Academy members toasted the stars of “Ted Lasso” on May 1, things were about to change dramatically in the Emmy campaign space. Apple TV+ was celebrating the opening of a “For Your Consideration” activation at Goya Studios, where it erected a massive tent to showcase its bevy of contenders. It’s a well-appointed and pristine space, with an almost Apple Store-meets-Emmys vibe. Displays celebrating Apple TV+ shows were front and center, along with an open bar, passed bites and a theater room for screenings and panels for celebrated shows like “Ted Lasso,” “Shrinking,” “Bad Sisters,” and more. But now here’s the problem with FYC: The writers strike has upended everything. The clouds were already forming at that “Ted Lasso” event, as the strike was called at the same moment co-creator/star Jason Sudeikis and team were celebrating the show’s Season 3 on stage. Many of the “Lasso” stars double as writers — Sudeikis, Brett Goldstein and Brendan Hunt included — so the power and importance of writers was on everyone’s minds. Sudeikis even remarked on how surreal it was to be there on stage talking about writing “Ted Lasso” just as the issues facing the town’s scribes took center stage. “Shout out to the writers,” he said. “What a day to be doing this.”

As the writers strike enters its third week, there’s little sign of resolution between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. Picket lines surrounding studio offices and production sets continue to draw striking writers and other entertainment industry workers, including members of SAG-AFTRA, the PGA and IATSE looking to show solidarity with their colleagues. With their pens down professionally, writers have taken the opportunity to channel their talents toward the strike, crafting some clever puns and harsh roasts for media executives.

Pat Saperstein Deputy Editor Since the writers strike started on May 2, celebrities have turned out to support WGA members picketing for a better guild contract. Actors like Fred Armisen are also writers who are members of the WGA, while some SAG-AFTRA members are walking the line to support their colleagues. Since most TV shows and movies have suspended production until the strike is resolved, stars, writers and filmmakers like Christopher Nolan are taking to the streets to show their support for members of the Writers Guild of America.

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.

The writers strike may bring about a disturbance in the force. The current work stoppage already has disrupted the production of several TV series; Lucasfilm’s The Mandalorian may join the last.

Jonas Brothers made their first joint appearance on on Sunday, and looked back at their younger years in the spotlight.During a segment called «Agree or Disagree,» Nick, Joe and Kevin Jonas were posed a series of questions by host Andy Cohen, including if they think is a better movie than (agree), and if they were the best singers in a Disney Channel collaboration that also featured their exes, Selena Gomez, Miley Cyrus and Demi Lovato (disagree).One burning question the brothers weren't shy about answering was about their infamous purity rings, which they wore during the start of their career — publicly vowing that they would wait until marriage to have sex.«The purity rings were a bad idea, one, two, agree or disagree,» Cohen asked. Joe, Nick and Kevin all turned their paddles around to flash «agree.» «In theory they're not a bad idea,» Nick quipped. «But you should know what you're signing up for before you sign up for it.»«When you're 12 versus when you're like 16 is a very big difference,» Joe added.Cohen then asked the brothers if there was a big moment when they took the rings off, to which Nick replied, «It just sort of happened.» Today, the singers are all married.

HBO‘s The Last Of Us adaptation have reportedly been put on hold due to the ongoing Writers Guild of America (WGA) strike.Per a new Variety report, sources close to the production of The Last Of Us have confirmed that the show had begun preparations for its casting process, but have been halted earlier this week.Other sources told the outlet that actors auditioning for season two were told to read lines directly from The Last Of Us Part II, the 2020 PlayStation game that season two of the HBO series will be based on. Variety also reports that though strikes are ongoing, with no end in sight at the moment, the production hopes to begin filming in Vancouver early next year.Craig Mazin – who co-wrote, co-directed and was showrunner on the HBO adaptation – has reportedly been spotted at ongoing strikes and is not currently involved in any writing, producing or casting work for season two due to the strike.Naughty Dog‘s Neil Druckmann, who created the gaming franchise and co-created, co-wrote and co-directed on the HBO show, is also reportedly not working on season two at this time.HBO’s adaptation of The Last Of Us premiered earlier this year and received rave reviews, with NME scoring it four out of five stars.

We’ve got bad news for fans who were waiting to hear more about the second season of HBO’s hit show The Last of Us: Casting has been put on hold due to the ongoing writers strike.

Netflix, Disney, Apple, Amazon, Paramount, Warner Bros. and others. On the WGA side, writers are seeking better pay, streaming residuals, safeguards against AI technology that threaten to replace their work, among other issues amid the rise of streaming services.Since the strike was announced, a number of films and TV shows have shut down production in solidarity – or because they can’t move forward without the involvement of writers.

Disney won’t give a figure for the cost of the ongoing WGA strike yet, noting that the “new development” has not yet been quantified by the company.“We have not estimated that because that’s a new development and we haven’t really quantified what that is, because we don’t know how long it’s gonna last,” CFO Christine M. McCarthy said of the WGA strike during Wednesday’s earnings call.

For Tony Award nominees, the next 37 days will be the usual long slog of interviews, parties, nerves and anticipation. But for producers of the ceremony’s June 11 broadcast on CBS, the date carries a new cause for insomnia: Who will write the thing?

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”.

Drew Barrymore has pulled out of hosting the 2023 MTV Movie & TV Awards just days ahead of the live show.

The writers strike, so far, has not affected production on Amazon series Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and HBO’s House of the Dragon, both of which are currently shooting in the UK.