The most-senior officials from eight studios are holding
meetings more regularly, alongside smaller committees of executives who are
working to settle the dispute with the writers and a separate strike by actors,
said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing internal
deliberations.
The Writers Guild of America said in an emailed statement
Thursday that the studios’ Alliance of Motion Picture & Television
Producers requested a meeting for Friday. The union expects the alliance to
respond to the guild’s proposals.
The writers have been on strike since May. The Screen Actors
Guild joined them in July. Both unions have been seeking an increase in base
pay, residuals from streaming services and job protection from the use of
artificial intelligence.
Both sides have traded barbs in recent weeks, with the
writers accusing the studios of not bargaining in good faith. The studios
responded by saying the guild’s rhetoric was “unfortunate.”
Representatives of the union and the studios met last week,
without a conclusive agreement to restart talks. The media giants, including
Walt Disney Co. and Netflix Inc., have reported better-than-expecting earnings,
in part due to savings from not having to produce new films and TV shows. Some
believe that their willingness to put up with a work stoppage may be coming to
an end.
“I think they’ve maximized whatever savings they had long
prepared for, and are now eager to get back,” said Tom Nunan, a lecturer in
film and TV at the University of California at Los Angeles.