Writers Strike: Are Your Favorite Series at Risk?

Hollywood is experiencing one of its most critical moments after the Writers Guild of America (WGA) went on strike on May 2 . This has caused uncertainty about the launch of new seasons of the favorite series, and it is rumored that some are even at risk of cancellation.

The immediate effects have fallen on programs with live broadcasts, such as "Saturday Night Live" or "The Tonight Show" with Jimmy Fallon, among others of this type. The reason is that to carry them out, the presenters, or the sound and video equipment are not enough; behind each comic fragment there is a scriptwriter.

Who Are Behind Your Favorite Series?

On many occasions there is the mistaken idea that the scripts of the stories, based on another work, are written by whoever has the original idea. In a few cases it happens like this, since generally the scriptwriters are in charge of reinterpreting the universes of original ideas or series based on stories already embodied in another work or in reality.

In the case of a series like "Game of Thrones" there are two who have the main task of writing the scripts. They are David Benniodd and Daniel B. Weiss. Both are the creators, producers, and directors of the series based on the books by George RR Martin.

Different is the case of “Stranger Things” with the brothers Matt and Ross Duffer, since they had the original idea, and although they do write some chapters, their task is more focused on directing. Original ideas like this or Sam Levinson's “Euphoria” are usually created, written and directed by the same person.

With “Bridgerton” another model happens whereby the creator, who is Chris van Dusen, only writes three of the 16 episodes that the series has. There are seven different writers in the first season, to give an example.

The case of "The White Lotus" is limited to having the same creator, director, and writer of the scripts for all episodes with Mike White. "The Last of Us" has a similar model, with Craig Mazin writing almost every episode.

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What Will Happen to the Big Productions?

Among the series with the most followers that will be partially affected, “Stranger Things” stands out. The Duffer brothers announced via Twitter that the production and filming of the new season of the Netflix series will not continue while the WGA strike continues.

However, it is not the only slowed production. "No writers on set", was what the creator of “Cobra Kai”, Jon Hurwitz, published on his social networks along with a photo of him with the writers of the series. This represents a delay of the sixth season of the action production for Netflix.

Another is the case of "House of the Dragon". The series will not stop filming because the scripts for the chapters were finished and delivered on April 11, several weeks before the strike began. What is in question is a third season. On the other hand, the prequel to "Game of Thrones" entitled "The Knight of the 7 Kingdoms" was stopped.

A striking case of the strike has been the attitude taken by the writers of “Succession”. In one of the protests, a banner was seen threatening to make 'spoilers' of the series if an agreement was not reached soon.

What Happens with Series Recorded Outside the United States?

It is worth noting that this strike is currently taking place nationwide in the United States, although many productions in that country are shot abroad. To give a couple of examples: HBO Max's “House of the Dragon” is filmed in England and other European countries, as is Prime Video's “Lord of the Rings: Rings of Power”.

However, Hulu's Emmy-winning “The Handmaid's Tale,” which is filming in Canada, is also on hold for now. The writers of the new season managed to deliver some finished episodes, but they are still incomplete.

The consequences of the strike became tangible with the firing of David Simon by HBO. The writer of “The Wire” joined the strike a few days ago, noting that after 25 years, the studio decided to suspend his contract.